


Death and the Girl

by PockyCookie



Category: Bandom, Black Veil Brides, Emerson Lake & Palmer (Band), Motionless in White (Band), Pink Floyd
Genre: Demonic Possession, Demons, F/M, Ghosts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2019-03-13 14:45:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 56,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13572774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PockyCookie/pseuds/PockyCookie
Summary: Junko is a college student and amateur ghost hunter alongside her friends. These ghost hunts are relatively harmless until she meets a group of demons. Junko finds her entire life turned upside down as she has to deal with the ghost attacks and her feelings for the demon's leader.





	1. Night One

**Junko's POV**

"I thought I might find you here." The soft, autumnal breeze flicked my hair as I angled my face toward a very familiar voice. Collette was strolling towards me, blonde hair tied into a loose bun that she totally pulled off.

"Yeah, just thinking," I replied. "Reading."

I hold up my book and then set it down on my lap. She made herself comfortable next to me and leaned her head on my shoulder.

"How come you're not in class?" I asked.

"Finished at two today." She replied, staring across the field.

The field spanned down in a rush of green towards the main campus. It was an old building that had been undergoing repairs for a few months now. It was one of the oldest colleges in the US and the place I had decided to spend the rest of my school life.

"Hey, Hunter's walking down the stairs." Collette grinned at me.

My gaze immediately snapped up from the book I was pretending to read. Hunter was, indeed, walking down the steps from the main building, flanked by two of his friends.

"We should totally-" Collette giggled, but I cut her off.

"No, nope, not in a million years. You know that we don't talk on campus." I replied, shuffling under the pressure of her gaze.

"Oh, come on. Who made up that stupid rule, anyways?" Collette snapped.

I wanted to remind her that Hunter had set up that rule. He didn't associate with us at college. Reputation was still important in college, just as much as high school. Hunter made his way across the quad. I lowered my eyes. It was Friday so we'd see Hunter tonight.

"Liam has found somewhere awesome tonight." Collette said, turning her eagle-eyed glare from Hunter to me.

"Really? Where?" I asked, like I really wanted to know.

"His cousin got the keys to the most haunted house in town," Collette continued. "It's been declared uninhabitable. No one has lived there in, like, forever."

I glanced across the quad again. Hunter and his friends were throwing a football back and forth. I shifted nervously and Collette noticed.

"Maybe this time we'll hit the jackpot." She grinned.

I sure hoped we didn't. We went on these little ghost hunts all over the town and even to some places that were out of state. We'd caught orbs, sure. We'd heard knocking sounds, definitely. We'd never actually seen an actual ghost though. Liam always said it was more about the feeling; like how you feel you're being watched. I got that feeling a lot from my Mom's cat, Potato, but only when he was hungry.

"Plus I could work it so you're alone with Hunter." She waggled her eye brows at me.

Alone with Hunter? And what would we do whilst alone? Why, what I usually did when we were forced into each others company. I'd make terrible small talk and he'd pretend to care. Besides he was already dating Victoria Clark. I was fairly certain she'd be unhappy if her boyfriend was alone with another girl.

"He's got a girlfriend." I sighed.

"Yeah, but Victoria and her underbite are no match for you." Collette laughed, and I rolled my eyes, cracking a smile at her humour.

The wind gusted across the quad, picking up strength. Collette rubbed her arms. It was time to head back to the dorms. I grabbed my bag, slinging it over my shoulder and trailed after Collette. The sun was still quite high but the nights were slowly beginning to fade into dusk earlier and earlier.

We walked side by side towards the dorm, passing a few other students as we did so. Some nodded at Collette because she was bright and social. Collette and I arrived at our dorm and she pushed open the door since it was too heavy for me.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours." She grinned when she stopped at her door.

I smiled and ambled down the hallway. I could hear laughter from one room as I passed. Shelley must have been talking to Andrea again. The corridor wound round a sharp bend and I paused at my door, unlocking it. I closed the door and set my bag down. Tonight seemed like it would be cold so I'd need to wear a coat and maybe a beanie.

I perched on the edge of my bed and picked up the book Liam had lent me. The Everything Ghost Hunting Book. The spine snapped slightly when I opened the book. Liam had obviosly read this book a lot before he lent it to me. The page I turned to showed a grainy photo of a figure on the stairs of an old house. I stared at the photo and turned the page. It seemed almost romantic to want to believe in ghosts. I glanced away from the book to the window.

 

*******************

 

The sound of knocking made me leap up. A cursory glance at my bedside clock told me it was 18:45. I must have fallen asleep, looking at the ghost book, obiviously. The knocking continued until I rushed to the door. Opening the door, I was greeted by Collette's disgruntled face.

"Good evening to you too." She said, chuckling at my dishevelled look.

She barged past me. She was wearing leggings, a jumper and a pair of Ugg boots. Her blonde hair was plaited. I knew I looked like a troll compared to her. She stayed whilst I combed my dark hair until it looked tidier. I threw on a baggy hoodie, ignoring Collette's protests. I stuffed a beanie on my unruly hair and dragged her from my room.

The dorm hallways were alight with noise as girls went out to meet boyfriends and friends. The dorm stairs were lit by a single street light that made the whole street seem eerie. Liam was already waiting, parked out front in his green Volvo.

"Good Evening ladies." He grinned. Hunter was next to him in the passenger seat and he smiled at us both.

Collette opened the door and we both crawled into the back seats. The door shut and we pulled away from the side walk and into the night.

"SpringWood House has been abandonned since the 1980s. Part of the building has fallen into a state of disrepair." Hunter was reading from a webpage on his phone.

"What haunts this place?" Collette asked, leaning forward.I stayed silent, watching the road speed by.

"Apparently the ghost of a creepy, old hag haunts the upper floor," Hunter continued. "However the downstairs area is haunted by a ghost known as The Lady of SpringWood. She was a beautiful bride murdered by her husband."

My eyes snapped forward. I could see Hunter's phone screen. A photo was on the screen. It was a picture of a window of the house. Through the curtains was a figure that seemed to resemble a woman, staring forlornly through the decaying window. A small part of me felt sorry for this ghost. The drive continued in silence until we arrived at SpringWood. Liam had to drive the car up a wooded slope towards the house.

The house itself was beautiful, even in a state of disrepair. Liam cut the brakes and I finally got a good look at SpringWood. It was two storeys high with stairs leading to the front porch. What drew my eye was the stained glass window in the middle of the second storey.

"Looks like the Amityville." Hunter chuckled.

I disagreed completely. We all got out the car and Liam opened the boot. Our first job was to set up the cameras and then I'd sit in home base and watch them for anything whilst the others walked round with EMF meters.

 

*********************

 

"Can you see me?" Collette asked.

I was sitting in the dining room of SpringWood. Two laptops were open in front of me. One screen split between the upstairs hallway and the bedroom where the 'hag' haunts. Collette was testing the one in the lounge where the 'lady of SpringWood' was said to be.

"I can see you." I murmured into my walkie talkie.

Collette grinned and gave a thumbs up. She moved away from the camera and I heard her footsteps creak towards the kitchen. I sighed, shifting in the fold out chair. Liam had gone down to the basement and Hunter was upstairs. My eyes left the camera to glance around the room.

The wall paper was faded, but it was decorated in some hideous flower pattern, quite popular to grandma's. There was some furniture left over but it had been covered by white sheets. I shifted and then looked at the camera, taking a sip from my thermos. A face was staring at me from the camera in the bedroom. Not a hag, definitely not a hag.

A young guy was staring at the camera. I swallowed my coffee and stared at the thermos then back to him. His features were soft, but angular. His hair was long and had a slight fringe. His eyes then seemed to lock with mine, staring at me. He lifted his finger to his lips and I realised he was telling me to be quiet. A sly grin appeared on his face. I hesitated then lifted the walkie talkie.

"H-hunter, there's a guy in the main bedroom." I stuttered.

"A guy?" Hunter sounded as confused as I felt.

I waited and glanced at the camera again. The screen had blurred and static rinsed over the frame. Then the camera returned as Hunter walked into the room. I watched him explore the room, opening cupboards, peeking under the bed and behind curtains.

"There's no one here now." Hunter said, sounding slightly annoyed.

My mouth opened in slack-jawed horror. That guy couldn't have gotten out of there without Hunter noticing him. Hunter sighed and left the room, closing the door. When I glanced back up, the guy was staring at the camera again.

"Naughty girl." He grinned.

I gathered my courage and glared at the camera. I picked up the baseball bat that Liam bought along in case of intruders.

"Gonna fight me with that, baby girl?" The guy was grinning again. How could he see what I was doing?


	2. Night Two

Dang right I was gonna fight him with this baseball bat. I stared at the camera and the guy stepped back, beckoning his finger towards the camera.

"I'm all yours, sweetheart." He smirked.

I gripped the handle of the bat and nodded. Marching towards the stairs, I immediately felt less brave than before. How had Hunter not seen that guy? Where'd he go when Hunter entered the room? Never mind all that seemingly important information that I should probably think about before I go barging into that room.

I mounted the stairs and used my phone torch for light. The attic door was still open so Hunter must still be exploring up there. I snuck by and got to the main bedroom, where the hag was supposed to haunt. Maybe people were wrong. What if the ghost wasn't a hag, just a guy with long hair. I gripped the door knob and turned it.

The door creaked open and I was greeted by a dusty looking bedroom. The carpets were threadbare and the furniture had been left uncovered. It all looked ancient. The door shut behind me and I whirled round, still gripping the bat. He was here, standing behind the door.

Up close, this guy was slightly taller than me. I was only 5 foot so he must have been around five foot five. He was wearing a leather jacket and jeans. His hair was brown and sat just above his lean shoulders. He wasn't making a move to hurt me though.

"What're you doing here, sweetheart?" He asked.

"None of your business." I snapped.

"It is my business. You're interfering here and things could go bad." He replied, glancing round the room.

"How'd you get here?" I ignored him.

"I was sent here." He grinned.

I frowned at that. The house creaked suddenly and I looked round. My eyes flicked to him and he shrugged, but the way his jaw tensed meant something was happening.

"You and your friends need to leave." He said, grabbing my wrist in a very cold hand and pushing me towards the door.

"No way. What's going on here?" I whirled round, pointing the end of the bat at him.

"Oh, please," He rolled his eyes, snatching the bat and throwing it across the way.

The house creaked again and the window opposite suddenly flew open. Wind spliced round the room and I was shielded from it by him. From behind his lean frame I could see a woman in the window, outlined by the glow of the moon.

"Target sighted, Tris." The guy spoke into a device on his wrist.

"Okie Dokie. I'll let Roger and David know." A perky voice said.

The woman in the window turned. The guy covered my mouth with his hand. The woman, or ghost, or whatever had long, lank hair that shimmered. Her eyes were holes and her fingers ended in sharp talons. She seemed to be having a hard time focusing. The ghost sniffed the air and her sockets fell on us by the door. She snarled and levitated into the air.

I was pushed sideways. He'd saved me. I lifted my aching body in time to see her swipe at him. He jumped back with agility that no ordinary human could possess. I needed to help him. I couldn't lie here and do nothing. My eyes landed on the baseball bat. I crawled towards it, grasping the handle.

I swung it and it went straight through the ghost. She turned mid-air and hissed at me. I must have tripped as I landed on the ground, eyes staring at the ceiling. The ghost leaned over me, taloned hands gripping my arms. Her nails cut in and I prepared myself for death. An electric bolt went through her and her grip loosened. I watched as the ghost levitated and shattered like glass.

My gaze went across the room. There were two more guys standing there, aiming guns. They both lowered the weapons and the guy from before rushed over.

"Are you ok? Did it hurt you?" He asked.

"I'm gonna puke." I murmured, rolling over and throwing up.

Yep, this was definitely a high point in my life. My hair was moved and I realised he was holding my hair back. I sat up slowly.

"Target was eliminated, Tris." One of the guys across the way said.

"Awesome job, guys." The girl's voice said again.

"We have a human witness though." He said, and waited, offering me a pleasant smile.

"Oh that sucks. Is the human injured?" The girl asked.

"Hold on, I'll check," He replied. "Keith, is she injured?"

The guy, Keith looked me over, gripping my arms and analysing. There was a slight scratch on my right arm where the ghost's nail had dug in.

"There's a scratch." He said, thoughtfully.

"Aww, bad luck," The girl, Tris, said. "Bring her in for a health check."

"Yay, awesome." Keith grinned, standing.

Before I could protest he'd picked me up like a sack of potatos. He pressed a button on the device on his wrist, which was made slightly difficult by me being in his arms.

The air nearly left my lungs and I closed my eyes at the sudden increase in pressure. When my eyes opened, we were standing in a foyer. What the heck was happening? The sound of heels on the floor made me look round. A girl was marching towards us. Her hair dark purple and her bright eyes looked exuberant.

"On behalf of his excellency King Lucifer, I welcome you to the NetherWorld." She was talking to me. I blinked stupidly at her. "I'm Beatrice."

Keith set me down and I nearly lost my footing, but managed to shake her hand. She beamed brightly.

"She puked a minute ago." Keith warned her and she stepped back, looking nervous.

"May I see your injury, please?" She asked.

I held out my arm and she stared at the wound. What was she looking for?

"There's no venom around the wound. I'll get some anti-venom just in case. Were there other humans?" Tris asked, straightening up.

"Yeah, three more. I wiped their memories though." The guy with the slight beard said, grinning.

The other guy's eyes widened and he looked concerned, "Did you manage successfully this time, David?"

"I think so, I mean, yeah I assume so." David replied, eyes looking everywhere.

Well that was reassuring. My friends could have had their memories wiped so throughly they won't recall the past two weeks. The guy next to David looked at me again and smiled.

"Sorry, your friends will be fine," He said, then held out a hand to me. "I'm Roger."

I took his hand, noting it was cold too, like something very dead. He had a firm grip. He let go and grabbed David's shoulder.

"Go report to Chris." Tris shouted after them.

She smiled at me and proceeded to drag me down a hallway away from the foyer. We walked up a flight of stairs and along another corridor. She stopped at a door and I followed her inside.

This was a hospital. There were beds lining the walls, none of which were occupied. Tris motioned for me to sit down. I was still in so much shock that I complied and stared around nervously. Keith sat down next to me, following my gaze as I went round the room.

"You'll be fine." He reassured me.

"T-thank you." I murmured.

My throat burned and I could still taste bile. My hair was a mess I was certain of it. Tris reappeared, holding a lime green pill and a glass of some liquid.

"Might taste a little weird for humans, but won't do you any harm." She said, handing me both items.

I gripped the pill and stared at it. The shades of green hit the lights above my head and made the pill look like it was changing colours. The drink she'd handed me smelt like cucumbers. I put the pill in my mouth and took a big gulp of the liquid. It tasted revolting, but I swallowed and nearly threw up again, heaving a little.

"I'll need to tell Chris." Tris said, and Keith nodded.

His jaw was set again in that concerned way. I really wanted to go home now, back to my dorm room and make sure my friends were still alive.

"Can I go home now?" I asked.

"Well, I need to monitor you for a bit." Tris replied.

She glanced at Keith and they went over to the door and left me there. I could just about hear their voices. Something about me being able to see them in the human world. I felt like I'd broken some unwritten rule and it left me anxious. I could hear retreating footsteps and the door opened. Keith reappeared and he smiled.

"You should rest," He said, noticing my wary glance. "Nothing will happen to you."

I closed my eyes and tried to relax. When I opened them again I was alone. I sat up, staring wildly around the room. Where had Keith gone? I felt stupid to say that he was someone I relied on. I could hear voices outside. I heard Tris. She sounded like she was reasoning with someone. The door opened and I sat myself up in the chair.

Another guy walked in. His black hair was long, trailing past his shoulders. On closer inspection, he had dark eyes that seemed almost crimson. Three piercings were in his lips. The silver of the piercings stood out against his pale skin. His features were severe and his gaze was cold. He saw me and walked over. He was wearing a black suit.

"Are you the human?" He asked.

He sounded young, but there was something about him that seemed older than what he was. I shuddered and shrank down slightly under his glare. Tris tapped his shoulder and whispered something. He focused on her words for a second before glaring down at me again.

"I, um.....M-my name is Junko." I whispered, fear lancing through my voice. I didn't care though. This guy,Chris, scared me so much.

"I was told that black venom had got into your body through a scratch." He said.

Tris leaned down, offering an apologetic smile and showing him the scratch from the ghost. He stared at it then at me.

"She took some anti-venom three hours ago." Tris said, allowing my arm to sag.

"And is it true you can see the ghosts as humans call them?" He snapped.

I had seen the woman. I had tried to swing a baseball bat at her. I nodded and Chris analysed me with those dark eyes. His sharp glare left me and went to Tris.

"Send her home." He said, and turned to leave.

Tris nodded and held out a hand to me. I accepted and stood on very shaky feet. She led me down a hallway and towards the foyer. We paused in the middle of the room and she grasped my hand.

"Well, this is goodbye, Junko." She sounded sad.

"Y-yeah I guess so. Will you tell Keith thank you for saving me." I replied, and she smiled again.

I closed my eyes as the pressure exploded through my body and when I opened them again I was standing in the middle of the quad, facing away from the campus. Tris was gone and a breeze whipped round me. My phone was in my pocket. I pulled it out only to find it dead. I suddenly remembered Collette and the others.

I turned and ran back to the dorms. My heart was pounding as I did so. By the time I got to the double doors I was wheezing hard. I was so physically unfit. I mounted the steps with difficulty and practically knocked Collette's door down. I was so surprised when she opened it, looking freaked out.

"Hey, Junko, what's going on?" She asked, grasping my shoulders.

"You, and me, and ghosts." I was making no sense.

She pulled me inside and I sat on her bed, sipping some water she gave me. Finally after an eternity my heart stopped feeling like it would burst out my chest.

"Are you ok?" She asked.

"Did we go ghost hunting tonight?" I asked, and her eyebrows knitted together.

"No, Liam was feeling unwell so he bailed." She replied.

I'd gone back in time. I could remember everything, but Collette couldn't. Well, it had never happened to her. I needed to think fast otherwise I'd look like a crazy person.

"Oh yeah, sorry must have panicked." I said, fighting to keep my voice jovial.

"You must of had a bad dream." Collette suggested.

I nodded and finished the water. I left her room then, feeling humiliated. I got to my room and slumped on the bed. Tiredness came in thick waves and I fell into an uneasy sleep.


	3. Night Three

_'Did you hear the rumours?'_

_'I heard she was abducted.'_

My eyes flicked behind me, surveying the canteen. It was a quiet and kind of dull Tuesday. I'd spent the whole weekend locked in my bedroom, thinking about the events that took place on Friday. Once I'd convinced myself I was sane I decided to leave my room and spend some time being social.

Today I was seated with Collette, who was munching noisily on a salad and holding a gossip magazine in one hand. All around me people were whispering and it was hard not to notice. During my hiatus in my dorm room, a girl had gone missing on campus. This kind of thing didn't happen very often.

It took all of a day to instate a curfew. A poster was across the way with the girl's face on it. She looked pretty and well-liked judging by the picture chosen. It was her with a smile and a her arm round another girl. Her face had been conviniently circled in each poster.

I floated to my last lecture after lunch and ignored Liam's requests to do a ghost hunt in SpringWood. He couldn't help it. He had no memory of Friday night. My mind was in and out of my lecture, vaguely wondering if what I had experienced was a dream or reality. Once my lecture was over I made my way to the dorms.

The curfew would start at seven. People were still wandering round, but it was only four forty. I wanted to have a shower and think about everything that had happened. I walked into someone and looked up, only to realise it was Hunter. Would he talk to me?

"Watch it." Victoria was with him and he trailed after her.

I was forced back into reality. I wanted to scream, but couldn't. I strolled across the quad and something else caught my eye. A guy was standing by the far wall. I frowned at his familiarity and walked over before I could stop myself.

"Keith?" I asked, and he glanced at me.

Recollection lit up his features, "Junko, what're you doing here?"

"I go to college here. Why're you here?" I asked.

Keith looked uncomfortable for a moment and it didn't seem like he wanted to tell me what he was up to.

"Apparently something has been abducting students. This college and another were hit over the weekend." He replied.

Something? That sounded ominous. I looked around the campus. The wind had picked up and was cutting across the quad.

"What if it's a creeper? Shouldn't we leave it to the police?" I pointed out.

"Two girls have been spirited away. Chris doesn't think it's a local creeper."

Ah yes, to be reminded of his boss made my entire body break out in a nervous sweat. The guy terrified me beyond belief. I wanted to help, but I also didn't want to get on Chris' bad side.

"Can I help?" I asked.

"Well, it's kinda against the rules, but you can see them too so it might come in handy." He replied.

I fist pumped and he chuckled. I reminded myself I was in public so weird behaviour wouldn't be tolerated.

"We'd need to clear it with Chris," Keith continued, then noticed my face become pale. "Or we could not tell him and sneak around."

I liked that idea better. We could sneak around until we were inevitably caught and then face Chris' wrath afterwards. My heart thudded at the thought.

"Ok, where should we start?" I asked, brushing aside my terror.

"You're gonna pretend like my boss doesn't scare the hell out of you." He chuckled.

Yeah I'm totally gonna do that. There was still the question of the curfew. I wouldn't be able to get out the front of my dorm so I'd have to climb out my window.

"It's like a kamikakushi." I said, and Keith frowned. "It means to be spirited away by gods."

"Ha, Gods don't have time for that trivial shit." He replied.

"O-ok, good to know," I said, slightly perplexed. I still had no idea what Keith was. "Meet me tonight at the 24 hour cafe down the street."

"Fine by me." He replied.

*******************

 

It dawned on me at around quarter to seven that I was breaking so many rules. I peeked out my door to see Alison, the dorm's mother, standing by the entrance. She'd already prevented a couple of people from leaving. She was no match for my stealth though. I closed the door and slipped on my black hoodie, perfect for sneaking.

I locked my door from the inside. My hands trembled as I did so. I'd never broken rules like this. I crept to the window and opened it. It only went up half-way, but that was enough for me. I slipped my legs out first until my toes touched the grass. My head went next and I glanced around. No sign of any teachers. I closed my window so it was ajar. I could prise my fingers under and slip back in undetected.

I walked quickly and kept looking behind me. I didn't want to be caught and I also didn't want some creeper following me. I followed the road down towards the cafe at the end of the street. It was popular student hang-out, not that I went very often. There were students already inside so I wasn't the only rule breaker.

I entered the cafe and sat down at a booth, picking up the menu and staring at the desserts first. Pecan pie sounded yummy. They had all the desserts as colourful pictures taken professionally. It was all so tempting.

"Shouldn't it be dinner before dessert," A voice spoke from above me.

I yelped and snapped my head round. Standing above me was Chris. His dark eyes analysed me. I immediately felt on edge. Why was he here?

"U-um, hi." I blurted out.

He chuckled and slid into the booth opposite, locking eyes with me and making me ten thousand times more freaked out.

"You don't seem very good at following instructions, Junko." He grinned, resting his chin on his palm.

My eyes went to his hands, they were huge, bigger than mine. He could smother me with them. There were also tattoos on his knuckles, colourful ones.

"What?" I said, because I'm so articulate.

"You're breaking curfew, interfering with a mission, again and you're clearly incredibly articulate." He smirked, raising a brow at me.

Did he just read my mind? I gulped and was relieved when a waitress appeared and filled the coffee mugs on the table.

"I'm trouble." I replied, pulling a mysterious face. I probably looked like an idiot.

"No, you're not," He chuckled then. "I'll allow you to help though."

He was allowing me to help? Really? I must have looked stupified because he laughed and I couldn't help but think he had the most amazing laugh. I mean, Hunter had a cute laugh, but this was something else. This was better.

"Sorry, I'm late." Keith had appeared. He looked a little on edge when he saw Chris and I.

He slid into the booth next to me. Chris tapped a button on the device on his wrist. I heard Tris say hello and I smiled at her chipper tone.

"Tris, what information have you obtained?" Chris asked.

"Right, here goes," Tris said, clearing her throat. "Both abductions happened over the weekend within hours of eachother. Both girls were last seen on their way to their respective dorms."

"Any other history of abductions?" Keith asked.

"This is where it gets weird. Apparently, around 30 years ago two girls disappeared around this time, same type of incident, and it happened 30 years before that. There are records of this going back as far as the 1700s." Tris continued.

"Something is feeding on them." Chris added.

A shiver chased down my spine. I glanced around Keith and looked at the cafe patrons. A group of girls were seated across the way. They were talking and laughing animatedly. A couple was seated in the far corner. Their hands were interlaced and they were talking in low voices.

"I want this thing found with no casulties." Chris said.

No pressure then. I glanced at Keith. He nodded and I did the same. With me involved there probably wouldn't be any casulties. I couldn't fight so my safety depended on the person next to me.

"Is there any possiblity this could be a student?" I asked.

"Good thinking, Junko. Nice to hear you again." Tris said, sounding happy.

I stayed and listened to them talk. It felt surreal being here. I wondered if Collette should know what was happening, but I didn't want to worry her. I barely noticed that we were leaving and Keith was nudging my arm.

"Let's go." He whined.

"Oh yeah, ok." I replied.

The streets were dark when we got outside. Chris turned to face the two of us.

"I'll make sure Junko gets home safely." He said, and I felt sick with nerves all of a sudden.

I glanced at Keith and he grinned, clearly not getting what my issue was. Fine, go, leave me with your boss. Someone who liked me one minute and hated me the next. Although this could give me a chance to do some sleuthing.

"See you tomorrow, Junko." Keith said, and he was gone in an instant.

I was left with Chris. He motioned for me to follow. Walking in nervous silence seemed like fun. I glanced up at him.

"So, I never asked what you guys are." I tried to brooch it with confidence.

"Why don't you help Keith with this mission and then you can ask what we are." He replied.

Thanks for nothing. We got to my window and i paused, glaring up at him. His lips tugged up slightly at the corners, like I was amusing to him.

"Still not gonna tell me." I snapped.

"I suspect Keith or one of the others will since they find your company interesting." He replied, shrugging.

"And you don't?" I shot back.

"I can take it or leave it." He said, raising a brow at my pout.

I turned and prised my fingers under the window and lifted it carefully. I hopped up onto the ledge and climbed through, turning to say goodbye. He was gone. Seriously? What a jerk.

 


	4. Night Four

"Someone weird? You mean, like you?" The girl I was talking to, asked, smirking at my dumbstruck face.

It was Wednesday and I had asked a few people if they'd seen any freaks hanging about the campus, looking like they wanted to devour students. So far, I'd either been ignored or made fun of. I'd finished my classes early today and this hardly seemed worth my time.

The girl flicked her hair and sauntered off. I sighed and turned to head back inside the campus. As I did so, Hunter was walking down the steps. He glanced at me then looked away.

Frustration bubbled up inside of me. If I was more confident I'd march after him and demand that he speak to me. Instead, I watched him walk across the quad.

"Wow, you must really like him." A voice said.

I turned round to find Keith leaning against the wall, following my line of sight. Hunter had reached the tree line at the edge of the quad and was talking to his friends. He turned and looked towards me. I ignored him right back and faced Keith.

"He's an aquaintance." I replied.

"An aquaintance that you're in love with?" He grinned.

"No, I'm not. You've got it totally wrong." I shot back, then realised my insistent denial sounded false.

"Clearly. Question is, why would you be in love with someone who ignores you like that?" He said.

I sighed and glanced back at Hunter. He was talking to his friends. He had his head in the palms of his hands and was hunched over. I turned back round to find that Keith had moved slightly closer and was leaning against the stairs, watching.

"We should explore inside the campus." I said, by way of avoding all questions.

It was easy to get inside since it was broad daylight. Students were walking around, going to and from lectures. No one paid any notice to us until Collette appeared. She frowned and walked over. I wanted to hide in that instance.

"Junko?" She said my name like she couldn't believe I was with a guy that wasn't Liam or Hunter. "Who is this?"

"Collette, this is Keith," I murmured, and she smiled.

"Hi." She held out a hand. Keith shook hands with her and stuffed his hands into his jean pockets.

I chatted to Collette, trying to get her to see me later at the dorms. She didn't seem to get the hint and I wanted to groan in frustration. Her eyes suddenly lit up with mischief.

"Oh, I get it." She grinned.

I frowned. What did she get? I glanced at Keith to see if he understood what she was getting at. He smirked at me and I glared at him. Collette reached out and hugged me.

"I'm so happy you're moving on from Hunter. He's so not worth your time." She whispered, pulling back and walking past me.

We walked on and it took me a few minutes to realise what she was implying.

"She thinks we're together!" I said.

"Wow, you're quick. Nothing gets past you." Keith chuckled.

The corridors were emptying out as students either went to their dorms or went to their lectures. You could hear the faint sound of students in lessons, but it was a distant hum. The hallway curved round and we walked down the stairs onto the lower floor. This floor was where the music and arts classes were based.

It was oddly quiet down here. I peeked into the classrooms. There were a few lectures taking place. These rooms were smaller so it was easy to see what was happening. One of the classrooms was empty, except from a piano in the corner.

"We should keep moving." I said.

Keith opened the door and I followed, whining all the way. He went straight for the piano and sat down. He'd lifted the cover before I could stop him.

"What are you doing?" I whisper-yelled.

I stopped short when he started playing. I watched in total confusion, then awe. He was good, not just good, but amazing. I stepped closer and stood next to the piano, smiling at last. Watching him play made all the fear I felt disappear. I don't know how long I stayed there, but he stopped eventually.

Someone was clapping. We both looked round to see a girl standing in the doorway. She was smiling brightly, clapping enthusiastically. Her hair was plaited and as she stepped closer I noticed she was a few inches taller than me. Her bright eyes were rimmed by round glasses.

"That was amazing." She said, letting out a breath she seemed to be holding in.

"Thanks." Keith smiled, looking away.

"Do you go to this college? I've never seen you before." The girl continued.

"No, I study overseas, actually." Keith replied.

This girl seemed kind. I wondered if we could question her without freaking her out and making her leave.

"Hey, do you mind if we ask you some questions?" I was careful. The girl glanced at me and nodded, still in the magic of the piano solo she'd seen a moment ago. "Have you noticed anyone weird hanging around campus?"

She shook her head and I sighed. This was getting us nowhere. I was about to give up when she stopped me.

"Wait. I've never seen anyone, but apparently in lecture hall 3-A, there is meant to be someone sitting in the empty chair at the back right corner, but when everyone leaves, there's no one there."

"Sounds like an urban legend." Keith said.

"Y-yeah, that's excatly what it is." The girl smiled, blushing.

Yep, she definitely liked him. I got the sense she'd say anything if it made Keith happy so I knew we were good to continue. Keith seemed to realise this too.

"Any other ghost stories, sweetheart?" He smirked.

"W-well, apparently one of the lecture halls' furniture gets moved during the night and the drama club have seen shadows moving around back stage." She continued, not taking a breath.

Whatever had abducted the girls must be what was causing all the strange activity around the campus. It meant brekaing into the college at night, which would be very tricky to do. I could get expelled if I got caught. Plus, the curfew was still in place.

"We should go." I said, and Keith nodded.

"W-wait a moment," The girl called. "My name's Sophie. Will I see you again?"

I glanced at Keith and he just shrugged. I glared at him. This poor girl was evidently smitten.

"Maybe, I'm on a break from studying." He grinned, and left.

I waved at her, awkwardly, and followed him. Tonight wasn't going to be easy. I'd never been a rule breaker until recently. I'd already broken curfew and now I'd be entering the college without permission.

 

***********************

 

Dusk rolled round really quickly. I'd slept for a while after I arrived back at the dorm and I'd drank far too muich coffee. I turned my light off and opened the window again. My feet touched the grass and I glanced around, hoping that there'd be no sign of any adults. I left my window ajar again and used the shadows to sneak across the quad.

The pathway weaved round towards the back of the college and I was blinded by a torch to my face when I got to the fire exit.

"Oh, it's just that human from last time." David grinned.

He was seated on the wall. The torch was nowhere to be seen and I realised he was lighting flames on each finger. I stepped closer and arched my neck to look.

"Got ya." He grinned when one flame lapped higher and nearly singed my hair.

"Quit doing that." Roger snapped.

He was peaking through a window. Eyes scanning the darkness. The back of the college was the oldest part. It was still waiting to be repaired and that included this fire exit. I'd discovered it when I tripped into the door last year and it opened without an alarm. I'd closed it at the time and told the secretary, but she didn't seem to care all that much. I think her passion died for dealing with students back in her thirties.

I pressed a hand to the door and someone grabbed my arm. I glanced at Keith.

"Are you insane? The alarm will go off." He hissed.

"Nope, it won't." I replied, pushing the door.

Slowly, it creaked open with a metallic screech. We entered the college quickly. The door slid closed and I stared down the corridor. No light was shining through the windows. Roger elbowed David and he lifted a hand, flames ghosted over his fingers, illuminating the darkness.

The light was still dim so it as we walked it cast eerie shadows over the corridors. Our own shadows stretched across the floor and up to the wall. Lecture hall 3-A was down the hall and to the right. Footsteps echoed behind us and I glanced round. A giggle resonated throughout the hallway. It sounded like a child. If a child's ghost was haunting the campus then it couldn't possibly be what we were looking for.

For some reason though, the demons with me had their weapons drawn. Another giggle bounced off the walls.

"Sounds like a child." I whispered.

"It does, doesn't it. Very convincing. Would you say it's a boy or a girl?" Roger asked.

I listened again and I realised it sounded indistinguishable. It sounded neither female or male. A shadow danced across the wall.

"Don't let them hurt me." A soft voice whispered.

My eyes dartetd sideways to see a little, black shape next to me. I side-stepped, covering my mouth to keep from screaming. David aimed his weapon and a bolt of electric shot the shadow. It reeled back and hissed.

"I didn't mean to hurt them," It said. "They were my friends. I want the girl with you to be my friend too. Won't you please let her be my friend?"

The voice was distorting more and more. I whimpered and glanced around. A shadow darted across the way. I nudged Keith and he shot the spot. The 'thing' snarled and reeled back again, circling us. It then took off down the hallway, gaining momentum and size until it was no longer a child. Its laughter bounced off the walls, reverberating as we ran after it.

"Shadow agents are the worst." David whined.

"Shadow agent?" I asked.

"They're awful, little bastards. They feed on human energy. This one has been feeding every thirty years, using urban legends as a means to get round colleges in the area." Keith was jogging next to me.

Where were the girls though? Were they already gone? I supposed that must be true. The shadow slid under the door to lecture hall 3-A. Roger opened the door and stepped in first. The windows near the ceiling allowed faint light to filter into the room. A chair moved across the way and he aimed over there.

I followed and looked around. I could see it, peering out from under a desk, red eyes glaring at the demons. I tilted my head in that direction. Keith got the hint and aimed. With a feral shriek he hit it. The shadow flipped the desk and writhed around in pain.

"Nooo, I just wanted to be friends," It hissed. "They were lonely too. So lonely."

The bolts coursed through it and with another snarl, it disintegrated, shattering into light. The room went quiet and I realised that it had gone. Hard to believe that it had caused so many problems. Keith lowered the gun, slipping it into the holster at the his side. Real, human footsteps echoed down the hallway. Great, we were in trouble now.

David grabbed my arm and pulled me to his side. He pressed a button on the device on his wrist. I closed my eyes, waiting to be found, to be expelled. When I opened my eyes, we were outside in an alleyway between the cafe and a store. I sat down on the floor.

"Will the girls be found?" I asked.

"Sadly no." Keith replied, sitting next to me.

"Shadow agents use pocket dimensions to hide their prey." Roger said.

At least, no more people would go missing now. It was a relief. I set my head against the wall, enjoying the cool feeling against my warm neck. I'd completed a mission with them. Now I could ask a question I'd been dying to ask since SpringWood House.

"What are you guys?" I blurted it out, rather than be tactful.

"Well, we're what humans call demons." David replied.

Demons? That word conjured up many bad things. When I was little I'd had a book of faerie drawings. The book was full of good faeries and bad faeries. The bad ones always looked beautiful in their own sinister way and looking at the three men with me, the same was true of them and of Chris. Beautiful. Sinister. Deadly.

"Demons are the bad guys." I stated, automatically.

"Do we look bad to you?" Keith said.

I glanced at him. In the streetlight, he looked ordinary. Human. His eyes were like a humans. His dark hair was human. He looked like a human.

"You look normal." I replied.

"Good. That's how you think we look. In these forms we are." He grinned.

He stood, holding out a hand and I accepted. I still had more questions, but I wasn't sure I wanted the answers so I'd leave it for today.

 


	5. Night Five

To say I felt like crap that morning would be an understatement. I stood in front of my mirror, dragging a brush through my hair. There were dark shadows under my eyes and my skin was paler than usual. I left my room earlier than normal and walked down the hallway. It all seemed quiet. I could see the sun streaking into the dorm hallway.

Pushing the doors open, I ambled down the steps, but paused when I felt like I was being watched. Whirling round, I noticed a guy was sitting on a wall. He looked strange. Actually he looked like nobody at this campus. Even the alternative kids would be amazed by him.

His black hair was long and sticking up. He was wearing very tight trousers that looked like he'd spray painted them on himself as well as a leather jacket. He noticed me and smiled. His lips were red. He approached me.

"You must be Junko." He grinned, flashing perfect, white teeth.

"Yeah, and who are you?" I asked, stepping back slightly.

"Wow, I'm amazed you'd tell a random stranger your name," He said, ignoring my question, blue eyes flashing mischeviously.

I often didn't tell random people my name, but he'd seemed so friendly that I couldn't help but tell him.

"Do you know Keith, by any chance?" I asked, and he nodded.

Another demon? He looked too young to be a demon. He looked like he was a year or so older than me.

"I'm Andy, by the way." He said, following me when I started walking to class.

"Hi, Andy." I smiled.

"Where you going?" He seemed genuinely interested.

"I have an English lecture to go to." I replied, and he pouted.

"I was told to retrieve you and not take no for an answer." He stated.

Who the heck would have issued that kind of order? Oh, wait, give me one guess and I'll bet I can guess right.

"Did Chris give you that order?" I asked, glowering at the young demon.

"Maybe," Andy replied. "Ok, fine. He did. Please come. He doesn't like to be told no."

Sounds ominous. I rolled my eyes and agreed. Andy seemed happier now and grabbed my hand in his. His hand seemed warmer due to the fingerless gloves he was wearing.

The feeling of being propelled from my world to somewhere else was still awful. Andy let go of me when we were in the foyer of wherever they were based. I followed Andy this time. He led me down a hallway and up a flight of stairs. He paused at a large door and knocked.

"Well, good luck." He grinned, walking away.

"Wait, you're not coming in with me." I said, freaking out.

"Nope, just you alone," He replied. "See you real soon, Junko."

Great, just perfect. The door opened and I faltered. I didn't want to go in. Chris still scared me so much. It was clear he didn't really like me. I was a major inconvinience to him. He'd made that pretty clear. Against my better judgement I stepped into the office.

No one was here. Who opened the door? This room was decorated dark red. A couch was across the way. It matched the walls. Books lined one wall and at the end of the room was a desk. I seated myself on the couch, perching on the edge, feeling out of place. My eyes roved round the room.

And landed on the bookcase. There was a snowglobe in-between the books. It was so pretty. I got up and walked over till I was in front of it. Inside the glass sphere was a small figure of a woman. She had no features except for being in a dress and her little head was angled to the side. On the side of the glass was a monster, looking in at the woman.

The two of them were either in a really heated staring match or were two lovers seperated by the glass. I really wasn't expecting something like this to belong to someone like Chris. I reached up and traced a hand down the glass, being careful not to leave smudges.

"Shall we add touching other people's things to the list of greivances about you, Junko?"

I shrieked and whipped my hands away when Chris spoke from behind me. He was literally inches from me and I stumbled backwards. He chuckled at my shocked expression.

"Holy crap, you scared me." I yelped.

"Given that reaction, it would seem obvious." He replied, sitting on the couch.

I lowered my tensed shoulders, but stayed rooted to the spot. My eyes went back to the snow globe.

"It's really pretty." I murmured, and then glanced at him.

"Small talk, Junko?" He leaned back, still observing me.

"I never really know what to say to you." I replied, lowering my gaze.

"Evidently." He chuckled again.

I noticed he looked a little tired. His eyes were closed and he'd rested his head against the back rest of the couch. With his neck exposed, I could see the tattoos there and they trailed below his shirt to places my eyes couldn't see. When I thought about it I blushed.

"You wanted to speak to me?" I said, stepping a little closer.

"It would seem that Keith and the others feel you are an asset so I will trust their judgement," He said, simply. His eyes opened again and he glared at me. "You are free to come and go as you please."

"T-thank you. Are you ok?" I asked, not for small talk this time, but because he seemed tired.

Those dark eyes observed me for a few seconds and he seemed to be thinking. I looked away again and waited. If he didn't want to be friends then fine. I guess I was cool with that. Why should it matter? It shouldn't. It didn't. Seriously, brain, it doesn't.

"I'm fine. You should go now," He replied, the ghost of a smile appearing on his lips. I nodded and started to walk away. "I agree, Junko. The snowglobe is pretty. It's fragile, like you."

I glanced back at those words. Only when I shut the door did I realise he had said I was fragile and pretty. My cheeks burned with the realisation. Then I felt guilt. I liked Hunter. I had always liked Hunter, but Hunter had never liked me. He'd always made it obvious. For some reason my heart was pounding. My hands were shaking.

I walked down the stairs and down the hallway and nearly walked into Tris. She didn't look angry, just pleased.

"Hello Junko," She smiled, brightly. "If you'll follow me, please."

She walked next to me and seemed unaware of my inner turmoil. My brain and heart were warring. What's worse is they were warring over two people who had no interest in me. When would I actually like someone that liked me back? I'd probably be that lady in her forties with fifteen cats. Mom would have been so disappointed.

We got to a room and she stopped, sitting at a desk. She handed me a black wrist band. I knew what it was immediately and accepted. My life would never be normal again now.

"For you," Tris smiled. "Your next mission will be with Andy and Ashley. I believe you've met Andy already."

Yeah, I sure had. I clipped the bracelet round my wrist and said goodbye to Tris. I went back to the foyer, glancing back towards the hallway where Chris' office was. Was I seriously hoping to see him again?

Hands covered my eyes and the world faded into darkness.

"Guess who?" Keith's voice said.

"I know it's you, Keith." I said, sounding petulant.

"Aw, you're no fun." He grumbled, removing his hands.

I turned round. His trousers were the same as Andy's, in the sense that I thought he'd spray painted them on. Demons sure were weird. I fiddled with the bracelet. I had no idea how to work it to get home.

"How do you work this dumb thing?" I said.

"Come here before you break it and I'll show you." He replied.

I held my arm out and his cold hands touched the bracelet, pressing the panels on it. The pressure exploded behind my eyes and when I opened them I was back outside the college. I checked my phone to find it was fifteen minutes before my class. I would never get used to that.

"Have fun studying." Keith grinned.

"Thanks. I'll try." I replied, mustering up a weak smile.

"You ok? You're not gonna puke again, are you?" He asked.

"No. I'm cool." I smiled a little more, trying to seem real.

I waved and walked up the stairs. Students were heading to class. I walked by Liam and he smiled, winking at me. I couldn't help but smile at Liam. I hadn't seen Collette yet. I hoped she was ok. I noticed Victoria chatting with her friends.

"Can you believe he'd do that?" She was speaking in an angry whisper.

She could have been talking about anyone. Why did I get the sense she was talking about Hunter? I guessed they'd match their relationship up and continue on their merry way.

 

*********************

 

My classes went along as usual and I scribbled down my coursework. I hadn't seen Collette all day. Instead I'd eaten lunch with Liam, his boyfriend and their friend, Sara. I hadn't seen Hunter either. I made my way back to the dorm and noticed a familiar figure in black by my dorm. Andy.

I strolled over and he saw me. He walked over to meet me half-way. We ended up in the cafe down the street.

"Told you, we'd see eachother again." He grinned.

"Yeah, you weren't kidding." I agreed.

"Ok, I guess I should fill you in on our mission," Andy said, sipping the coffee. "Do you know where Penbroke trail is?"

I did know. Penbroke was a a hiking route that went through the forest at the edge of town. It was said to be a favourite camping area and very romantic. People from the campus parked their cars there and would hike up the mountain and do things.

"I've heard of it." I replied.

"It's a make-out spot, isn't it?" Andy asked, smirking.

"W-what, well maybe." I said, hating how my mind though of someone that wasn't Hunter.

"It is. I could tell by your face. So, how many guys have you been up there with? Or girls, if that's your thing?"

"W-well, you know. A very high number."

"Is that number zero? It is, isn't it."

I pouted at Andy and he raised a brow. A habit he seemed to have developed over time. He seemed to do so without realising. He also seemed incapable of not speaking. We were opposites in every sense.

"Anyways, the mission?" I said, distracting him.

"Oh yeah, I can tease you later. Did you know a grand total of five people per year have been wandering off and then being found dead by the park's reservationists?" Andy asked.

"Five people a year? Every year?" I replied.

"Every year for the past ten years. These a sane, not suicidal people, falling to their deaths." Andy said, drumming his fingers on the table. He'd already torn the napkins to pieces.

"That's crazy." I whispered.

"Yep, and this weekend, you, me and Ash are gonna find out why." He grinned.

Great, a camping trip with Andy. It would be like a dream come true. I groaned and rested my head on the table.

"We're going camping." I wanted to check.

"Yep, we're going camping. The other agents couldn't find anything on the trail, but Chris thinks only humans are affected by it." Andy said.

Well, this ought to be a barrel of laughs.

 

 


	6. Night Six

By the time Saturday arrived, I was no closer to seeing Collette. I had knocked her door that morning and gotten no answer. I felt like an interloper so I walked away. I had gotten up early in order to meet Andy at the cafe.

In the harsh light of day I was definitely aware of everything that had happened over the past twenty-four hours. In fact my brain had kept me awake most of the night. I'd thought of Hunter like I usually did. My dreams of him were all hand-holding and old timey romance where he was Mister Darcey and I was Elizabeth. After a while though he'd morph into someone else.

His height would change, hair would grow and I'd find myself thinking of Chris. Hunter seemed a distant memory. I simply couldn't get over it. I'd spent most of high school thinking of Hunter and dreaming about him asking me out and now it felt like he was being shunted out.

I left the dorms and made my way across the quad. The Autumn sun was losing its heat and Winter was definitely round the corner. The campus looked so pretty though. The leaves were starting to coat the ground in yellows and reds like a carpet. There weren't many students around this morning.

I arrived at the cafe with time to spare and saw Andy waiting outside. He was smoking, leaning against the railing. As I got closer I noticed he was with another guy. This guy was slightly shorter than Andy. His hair was longer. Andy saw me first and threw the cigarette away, practically skipping over.

"Good Morning, Junko." He grinned.

How was he so happy first thing in the morning? I managed a sleepy smile and Andy swooped in, hugging me. Someone had no boundaries. The other guy cleared his throat and Andy dragged me over.

"Junko, this is Ashley."

I raised my hand in a wave and Ashley smiled. On closer inspection i noted his eyes were brown, almost like Chris' but without the crimson edge. Just what I needed this weekend.

"Hey, Junko. Good to meet you." Ashley grinned.

"I'm gonna get coffee before the boss shows up." Andy said, mounting the steps to the cafe.

At his words, my face heated up. Chris was coming here. I wasn't mentally prepared. I turned towards a car and checked my face in the chrome side. This was awful. I looked like a sixteen year old still. I hadn't magically matured in the night.

"You look nervous," Ashley noted. "Care to share."

"I-i, no, mornings are, um." I stammered.

"Right. And how long have you liked my boss in that way?" Ashley asked.

"N-no, you don't understand." I had been caught.

"Relax, I won't say a word. This demon's lips are sealed. Besides it's kinda cute." He smirked.

Andy reappered, handing me a polystyrene cup of coffee. Ashley accepted his and sniffed it. Then whined that it wasn't Starbucks. Andy dismissed him with a wave of his hand. Time ticked by and my nerves were like bacteria, multiplying until I felt sick.

Chris soon appeared. He walked round the corner. Today was Saturday so he was dressed a lot more casually. He was wearing skinny jeans and a hoodie, a black beanie was on his head and he was wearing a pair of sunglasses. I stared at my coffee in order to be cool.

"Morning, boss." Ashley smiled, elbowing me.

Andy was shoving bags into the car. He waved and slammed the boot shut, joining us. Chris glanced at me and I managed to look at him for approximately one second. He lowered his glasses.

"Morning, Junko." He grinned.

The way he said my name made my knees tremble. I mumbled an obviously nervous good morning back. I could sense Ashley next to me, evidently enjoying the show. Andy seemed oblivious to the whole thing.

"We're ready to go." Andy said.

"Good. If there are any problems then contact Tris. She'll be available at all hours. Should you need any back-up then Roger is free this weekend as is Stevie." Chris replied.

"Awesome. We'll be in touch in any case." Ashley stated.

"Another thing," Chris said, before the two demons went to leave. "It is important that Junko is protected as much as possible. No harm must come to her."

Andy nodded, squeezing my shoulder reassuringly. Ashley, meanwhile, smirked at my dumbstruck expression. Chris nodded and the two of them walked towards the car. I hesitated.

"You look better today. I-i hope you're ok." I murmured.

"I'll be fine, Junko. If you need me, your bracelet can contact me directly." He replied, smiling.

"O-ok, thanks," I said. Quick brain, think of something to say. Something witty. Something flirty like Collette. "I-i'll miss you." Gah, what the heck? Why'd I say that? Stupid, stupid brain.

I heard Ashley snort out a laugh at that. I stepped back, hoping to avoid possible embarrassment. I couldn't believe I'd said that. What a thing to blurt out.

"I'll miss you too, Junko," Chris chuckled. "Two days without you stammering and not looking at me will feel like torture."

I felt the heat rise in my face. I glanced at him to find he'd removed his glasses and was smirking at me. He was joking. He was messing with me, I realised and I managed a shy smile.

"W-well, bye." I said, turning and clambering into the back seat.

 

********************

 

We had driven half-way out of town and Ashley turned to face me from the passenger seat. He was grinning again.

"I'll miss you? Seriously, Junko?" He laughed.

"Please just drop it. I didn't mean it. I was on the spot." I shot back.

Andy was turning the car down the street towards the edge of town that led onto the highway. He was trying to concentrate and not laugh at the same time.

"I've never seen Chris smile like that." Andy chimed in.

"I know. He's always grumpy and moody," Ashley grinned. "It's Junko. She's softening him."

"N-no, I didn't." I protested.

The drive was just Ashley teasing me and I quickly found out he liked turning innocent sentences into dirty puns and laughing when I blushed. Andy drove into the reservation and we found a parking spot. There were a few cars here already. A camper van was parked across the way and a couple were sitting by a BBQ.

Across the way in a clearing was a children's play area. A couple of boys were on the swings. The car park led out towards a little cafe made of distressed wood and next to that was a cute, little gift shop. On the other side was a trail, leading through the woods I guessed that's where we'd be going.

I clambered out and started helping Andy unload the car. He gave me my bag and nothing else. I guessed he didn't mind doing the carrying. He practically threw Ashley's bag at him and laughed when Ashley threw the empty coffee cup at him.

I picked up the cup, throwing it in the bin, not wanting to give the park reservationists a reason to evict us. Andy slammed the boot and locked the car. I followed him as we walked down the pathway and through another clearing, clearly designated for campers. We set up our little area, just down from a group of girls and boys.

"We need to look like average college students partying." Ashley said, when I queried the location.

"Hey guys," One of the guys from the group across the way wandered over.

"Hey man, what's up?" Andy grinned.

"Noticed you guys didn't bring any kegs. You're welcome to share ours," The guy said, smiling. "I'm Austin, by the way."

"I'm Ashley, this is Andy," Ashley smiled. "And this is Junko."

I waved from my spot, setting up my tent. I was fairly good at it after camping a lot with the Girl Guides in middle school. Austin seemed like a nice guy. He was about Ashley's height and had shoulder length brown hair. He had a shark-fin necklace on. Clearly he was a surfer. He looked like one that would appear in a movie.

"Good to meet you all." Austin grinned.

Thankfully, he didn't seem that interested in me. I was glad of that. I finished my tent and helped Andy whilst Ashley and Austin chatted.

"Thanks, Junko." Andy smiled.

"You're welcome." I replied.

We set up a fire and sat down once the tents were assembled. I glanced at my bracelet and smiled a little. Ashley was across the way, cooking on the make-shift BBQ. They might not have bought beer, but Andy and Ashley had bought a lot of food. I was kinda glad there was no alcohol. I didn't drink. Never had, apart from at my cousin's wedding.

"We're gonna take a walk up the route in a bit." Andy said, and I nodded.

Once we'd eaten. Ashley asked Austin to keep an eye on our stuff. The younger guy agreed and we set off. The path weaved round and the trail sloped up a hill. We walked up there and came to the top of a hill. The drop from the hill was quite steep. I stared down then felt sick so looked away.

The day was already slowly turning to dusk. Ashley walked to the far side of the hill and looked across the forest. No one was up here yet. I couldn't see any ghosts or anything spooky. We stayed there for a little while, just searching. We came up empty. Eventually, giving up and going back down.

Ashley went and chatted with Austin and his friends when we got back. Meanwhile, Andy stayed with me, sitting by the fire. We were quiet for a few minutes until Andy broke the silence.

"So, you can see ghosts?" He asked.

"Yeah, it would seem that way." I replied.

"Normally humans can only see them when someone close to them dies or they percieve death," Andy stated. "So, which is it for you?"

I had never been dead before so the only thing that I could think of was something only a few people close to me knew. The college knew and were very understanding.

"Well, my parents passed away when I was six." I said, and Andy looked shocked.

"Junko, I'm so sorry." He murmured, seeming genuinely contrite.

"It's fine. Don't look so sad. It doesn't suit you," I laughed a little. "We were in the car. A drunk guy hit the driver's side. Dad died instantly. Mom was crushed."

"You were in the car too?" Andy asked, but he already knew.

"Y-yeah, I was in the back. They had to remove the roof to get me out, but all I had were some scratches." I mumbled.

"Junko, I'm- I just can't belive that happened to you." Andy shook his head.

I waved him off. I had flashes of memories from that time. I'm remember vague details like sitting in the hospital, crying. They'd got a nurse to sit with me and hold my hand. I couldn't really recall when Mom had died. Was it the same day or the day after?

My Mom's sister, Auntie Makoto came to get me from the hospital. She was distressed too, but had pulled herself together for my sake. We cried on the way home though. I'd lived with her right up until I came to college. I'd used money my parents left to pay my tuition fees. The money was fine, but I would have traded it all to have my parents back.

"Don't worry, Andy. I'm glad we talked about it." I smiled, and he did too.

"Cool. Let's talk about something more light-hearted," He replied. "So, you and Chris, eh?"

Yep, this was way worse. I shuffled nervously now. I would have spoken about anything other than this. Anything at all. The weather, that awesome tree over there, even Ashley making out with some girl across the way.

"He hates me." I stated, automatically.

"No, he doesn't. He seems to be warming up to you." Andy said.

He glanced up and seemed to notice Ashley making out with the girl too and sighed. He stood and politely excused himself. I was left sitting by the fire. Dusk had well and truely settled now and I heard the commotion as Andy helped a very drunk Ashley back to our area. I got up and opened my tent, crawling inside.

We hadn't found anything today. What if we didn't? I guessed these falls could be attributed to freak accidents. I could hear Andy talking to someone. He was being awfully sweet so I assumed he was using his bracelet to talk his girlfriend. Ashley must have gone to sleep. I wasn't surprised.

I checked my phone and texted Collette to ring me. I knew Liam would be spending tonight with his boyfriend so I didn't want to bother him. I sat and waited for Collette to ring and when she didn't, I phoned her. The phone rang until it cut to voicemail. Was she avoiding me? I set the phone down and set my head in my hands. With a sudden burst of courage, I lifted my arm to look at the bracelet.

Keith had worked it yesterday. I pressed one panel and it bought up Tris' contact details on a holographic screen. This thing was so advanced. Humans could only dream of this tech. I pressed the next panel and saw Chris' details.

Should I really ring him, or whatever this device did? He was probably only telling me I could contact him directly just to set my mind at ease. He obviously didn't want me to do so. I paused and listened to Andy's hushed conversation. I didn't want to bother him. I lifted my finger and found I could touch the hologram.

I pressed the name and a circle appeared on the hologram. It began to cycle round like how a YouTube video loads. I was amazed by this. I didn't have long to be amazed though.

"Hello? Junko?" Chris sounded confused.

"U-um, yeah it's me. Just updating you on stuff." I murmured. I heard him chuckle.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

"Y-yeah, Andy's talking to someone," I paused, biting my lip. "And Ashley's passed out."

"He get drunk again?" Chris said, and I guessed this happened often.

"Yeah, he did." I replied.

"And you're all alone now." He said, and I could hear the amusement in his tone.

I made a vague sound of agreement and shuffled nervously. Was this a bad idea? Yep, it was the worst idea to do this. He probably didn't want to talk to me. He'd said he could take or leave my company so he surely wouldn't want to converse with me.

"I know you probably don't want to chat with me, but I'm kinda lonely right now." I said, really quickly, aware I was being slightly snarky.

"Why would you assume I don't want to speak to you?" Chris asked. Oh great, I'd annoyed him.

"Because you're all scary and stuff." I laughed when I said the word scary in a slightly deeper voice.

Chris must have found it funny becuase I heard him laugh again. I smiled at the sound. A chill raced through my body.

"If I'm so scary then why are you contacting me, Junko?" He murmured, tone causing me to blush.

"I-i, no reason." I replied.

The night was starting to become really cold. I shuddered a little at the sudden dip in temperature. I was reminded that it would be October in a week's time.

"Cold?" Chris' voice snapped me back to reality.

"Y-yeah, it's chilly here," I whispered, stifling a yawn. "I liked seeing you in casual clothes today."

"Well, I liked seeing you in a dress." He replied.

My eyes widened and I stared down at my green, woolen style dress. It was a mint colour with a row of decorative buttons down the front. It had been a present from my Auntie last Christmas. I'd thrown it on this morning in an effort to appear presentable as well as plaiting my hair.

"U-um, I'm not sure what to say to that." I mumbled, toying with the buttons on the dress.

"You could take it that I think you're pretty." He murmured.

My throat closed up and I thought really hard to try and say something clever. Was he really saying this? It felt like a dream. A nasty part of my mind giggled and mocked me, saying that he was being friendly. The compliments were just politeness. I was still an annoying human that had interfered with a mission and interloped on his time. I pretty much interloped on everyone's time.

"I-i should get some sleep. Lots of stuff to do." I said, wiping my eyes, sniffling a little.

Pathetic. I was totally pathetic. As if someone like Chris would even look at me. I was short for my age and had a round face. This made me look child-like despite just turning twenty-one.

"Ok, be careful," He sounded resigned. I was about to cancel the communication when he spoke again. "Junko, I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too." I replied, taking a shuddering breath.

I cancelled the communication after that and sighed, smiling a little. A noise outside disturbed me and I whirled round, ready to confront the evil outside my tent.

"No, you hang up first." Ashley laughed, and I groaned.

Had he heard the entire conversation? There was no clear confirmation of that yet.

"Chris and Junko sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-." Ashley only got so far.

"Ash, I'm trying to fucking sleep." Andy snapped.

"All right fine, stroppy-pants." Ashley giggled.

I rolled my eyes at that. Unfurling my sleeping bag, I opened my bag and removed my PJs, changing into them and slipping into the sleeping bag. My view of the tent roof was uninspiring, but I smiled then. I felt my heart flutter. I clung to that feeling even as I fell asleep.

 


	7. Night Seven

Sunlight streamed into my tent and I was lying there, listening to the world around me awaken. Or rather, I could hear one of the guys from the group across the way hurling his guts up. It was an unpleasant way to begin the day.

I sat up and dressed myself then crawled out the tent to find Andy eating a cereal bar. He smiled at me and handed me one as well. I graciously accepted and sat with him.

"Ash won't be up yet." Andy stated, like it wasn't obvious that Ashley had gotten blind drunk.

How could someone get that drunk anyways? If Andy had heard my conversation last night then he didn't say anything. He was quiet and slightly more reserved. I guessed it was down to it being early.

I glanced over Andy's shoulder and thought I saw something through the trees. It looked like a little, glowing ball. I watched it dance among the grass and then disappear. Weird.

"Who were you talking to last night?" I asked, because nosiness and why not?

"She's my girlfriend. We've been together for 100 years." Andy replied.

Wow, a hundred entire years. Demons sure did things for keeps. I faintly wondered whether 100 was a high number. Maybe it was like humans when we celebrated a year and were all mushy and cuddly.

"Congratulations." I said.

"Demons are immortal. Ergo, their relationships last longer." He replied, eyeing me.

I could see the hint a mile away. He was trying to discourage me. I shuffled nervously under his gaze.

"Have you ever liked someone you weren't supposed to?" I asked, and Andy smiled then.

"Sure I have. I've loved humans too," He sighed. "Your short years, how you love unconditionally, how strong you are; it's a bittersweet feeling."

I guessed that were true. I would die in around 80 years, 90, if I were lucky. These guys would be here long after I was gone and long after everyone was gone. It was a sobering thought.

"My god, you two are so fuckin' moody." Ashley appeared behind Andy.

He didn't look hungover. He sat down next to Andy and smiled, dismissing Andy's glare. We all groaned when the guy from across the way started heaving again.

"Fuckin' weak ass humans," Ashley whined. "So, plans for today?"

"We wait till nightfall. Whatever this is won't show itself till then." Andy replied.

Nightfall would be a long time. I decided to amuse myself and have a shower at the facilities at the edge of campsite. The showers were surprisingly clean and well kept. I spent ages washing. I re-plaited my hair and put on a different dress and boots. Next on my little trip would be to visit the gift shop.

I walked in and found the shop to be full of weird, little knick-knacks. It was like entering another dimension. No one seemed to be around. I paused at a shelf that had snowglobes on and stared at them for a few moments, transfixed.

One of them had a small woman inside. Her skin was translucent and she had clear wings protruding from her back. Her face was downcast, watching a glowing ball in front of her. On her face was a secretive smile. I reached out and grasped the ornament.

On my way to the counter I also picked up a cat plush for Collette. Waiting by the cash register, I hoped I hadn't walked in when the shop was closed. I must have been miles away.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" A voice said.

I jumped out of my skin and noticed the voice belonged to a girl. She must have been a few years older than me. Her skin was like porclein and her eyes were a witchy green.

"Sorry, couldn't resist." She laughed, beads in her hair jangling.

She looked like someone who was effortlessly cool, but didn't care about it. Just made her cooler. Whereas I looked like a troll.

"The snowglobe is beautiful?" I queried. Thought that was what she'd said.

"Yeah, it is. You see, these little faeries live in the forest and dance around like little lights." She replied.

Sounds like someone was a bit crazy. I glanced at the snowglobe then back to her. That weird light must have been a faerie. These things are real? Seriously? The girl priced everything up and I paid her.

"Can I ask your advice?" I wasn't sure how reliable she'd be.

"Sure, go for it." She said, sagely.

"Hypothetically, if you were a guy, would you like this snowglobe as a gift?" I watched her face and she smiled.

"Hypothetically, if I was a guy then I'd think you really liked me to give me something so personal." She grinned.

Right, thanks for the advice, crazy shop girl. I accepted the paper bag with my stuff in and left. When I got back, Andy was watching Ashley, who was chatting to Austin. My god, I hoped Ash didn't decide to get drunk again.

"I think I've figured out what's killing people," I said, and Andy glanced to me. "Faeries. They appear as lights, people have been following them in the dark."

"Yeah, I get the sense that whatever is here isn't good, but isn't evil." Andy replied, grimacing when Ashley laughed.

"Can we get rid of faeries?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Nope, they were here first. This is their place. We're encroaching on it." He replied.

Andy decided after that we should follow the lights after dusk to be sure they were faeries.

 

**********************

 

Dusk came quickly and after our dinner, we set off. We hiked up the trail and were pretty pleased there was no one here yet. The sun had dipped below the skyline and we waited as the temperature dropped. We didn't have to wait long though. Across the way, on a nearby ledge I saw a small light.

It weaved along the side of the hill, dipping up and down. It's movements were co-ordinated, like it was dancing. I was in awe.

"Be careful, Junko." Andy said.

I trailed after the light and it seemed to be aware I was following. It changed its route and danced towards the edge of the hill. Andy stepped behind me and the light turned, flitting away, like it sensed that Andy was something not of this world. The light floated away down the hill. Ashley came to stand next to me. He elbowed me. I glanced in the direction he was pointing.

A million little lights flitted among the trees and floated towards the sky. I smiled as I watched them. They climbed slightly higher and weaved round towards the back of the hill.

"Can I go and watch them?" I asked.

"Yeah, but be careful." Andy warned.

"Your boyfriend would break our necks." Ashley snickered when I glared at him.

I raced after the lights as they ascended. The hill sloped round and I came out at a little peak. Across the way I noticed two figures seated on the ledge. Normal humans wouldn't have been able to see the lights. My foot crunched on gravel and one of the figures stood, turning and holding a torch.

In the dim light, I saw someone very familiar. Someone I'd been wanting to speak to since Friday. Collette. Her eyes widened when she realised it was me.

The other figure stood and turned. I recognised it was Hunter. Why were they out here? The puzzle pieces came together quite quickly for me. Why Hunter always ignored me, why he seemed so down when I'd last seen him and Collette's secretive behaviour.

"Junko, I'm so sorry." Collette said, voice thick with regret.

I almost couldn't hear her over the ringing in my ears. To be truthful, I wasn't that upset that she was with Hunter. Afterall, I was starting to get over my feelings for him. It was more that she'd kept this hidden and not told me. How long had she liked Hunter? Had she and him been doing this while he was with Victoria? A part of me already knew the answer.

I fled before she could take the first step. Andy was rounding the corner as I darted by. I ran past and skidded. My ankle twisted painfully and I felt myself going sideways. Before I could fall though, someone grasped my wrist. Ashley pulled me back, anchoring me.

Tears clouded my vision and he hugged me. My ankle gave way and he was holding me up. It felt humiliating to be carried back down the slope, but maybe not as humiliating to find out what your two friends were up to.

 

********************

 

Packing up our equipment took longer. Andy sat next to me as Ashley finshed and held up a glass orb. Inside was a small, winged woman. I pressed my pinkie to the glass and she pressed her tiny hands to the orb, looking sorrowful. I kinda knew how she felt.

The drive back was quiet and Andy parked the car near an old warehouse on the edge of town.

"Send the stuff back first." Ashley said.

They'd left me in the car, clutching the orb. The door opened and Andy reached in, scooping me out. My ankle was throbbing and had swollen. The pain was nothing though.

"Let's get your ankle looked at." Andy smiled.

I nodded and he cuddled me closer. I closed my eyes as we were whisked from my world to the other world. The foyer was empty when I opened my eyes.

"Hey, guys." Tris appeared, heels clicking.

She saw me and paused, looking concerned. Her hand reached out and she smoothed my hair from my face, kinda like a Mom would do.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Junko tripped following the faerie lights." Andy replied.

I found myself in the hospital wing again. The orb had been taken away. I sighed and glanced at the ice pack on my ankle. Tris had been super worried. I rubbed my eyes and leaned over to grab my bag.

"Hey, be careful."

My eyes shot up to see Chris. He'd gotten to my bag first and handed it to me. I accepted and sniffled. He sat next to me.

"T-thank you." I mumbled.

"Andy told me you tripped? Are you ok?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm sorry if I caused trouble. I-i saw my best friend and the guy I li-used to like- together. That's why I ran and that's why I fell." I whispered.

I glanced up and could barely see him through the haze of tears as they blurred my vision. I just about registered his hand touching my cheek, smoothing my hair from my face.

"I'm sorry, Junko." He said, and he did sound contrite. It wasn't his fault though. It was mine.

"S'not your fault. I'm sad that she kept it from me." I replied.

He removed his hand and I felt empty all of a sudden. I'd never felt so pathetic than I did tonight. Maybe Chris had realised I was a weak human. For some reason my mind went to the snowglobe in my bag and I opened the front of it.

I practically closed my eyes and thrusted the snowglobe in his face.

"This is for you. If you hate then it doesn't matter. I'll take it back and, and, um." I didn't even take a breath.

I felt Chris take the snowglobe and I lifted my head, peeking at him from beneath my fringe. He turned it over in his hand and then looked at me again. He smiled and my face heated up.

"Thank you for thinking of me," He said. "I really liked talking to you last night."

"Y-you did? Seriously?" I replied, eyes widening.

"Did I give the impression that I didn't, Junko?" Chris said, and I guessed he hadn't. Not in so many words.

"N-no, I was happy you spoke to me." I whispered, toying with my dress.

Our eyes met for a brief moment and he leaned down, grasping my chin, forcing me to look at him. Someone cleared their throat. I peeked round to see Tris in the doorway. She was smiling widely.

Chris pulled back and left, saying something to her, then leaving. Tris watched him then her eyes flicked to me. Her grin was getting wider and wider.

"What was that?" She asked, giggling.

"N-nothing. We were talking." I stated.

She shook her head, "Nope, I don't think so. That was almost a kiss."

I had never been so close to Chris. I could see the crimson flecks in his eyes and could still smell him. A flush rose to my cheeks and Tris laughed again.

"Ok, maybe it was almost a kiss." I said, smiling.

"Yeah it was," She grinned, then her face became serious. "I want it to be. He needs someone that's like you. He's been alone for so long that I was honestly getting worried."

"But I'm human." I whispered, and Tris smiled again.

"Sometimes we need to be with someone different." She replied, and walked over, checking my ice pack.

I glanced at the door and smiled. My face hurt a little. I guessed it was all the crying I'd done. I didn't really feel like crying now.

 


	8. Night Eight

I found myself back in my dorm room on Sunday night. My ankle was still throbbing a little. Tris had removed the ice pack and smothered it in some kind of balm that stung, but seemed to resolve the swelling. Slumping into my chair, I sighed.

Closing my eyes, I could picture Collette and Hunter. I scrunched up my face and fought to ignore the stab of pain in my chest. I picked up my bag and pulled out my phone. Typical. Collette had phoned me about ten times and messaged me. It was my turn to do the avoiding. Or so I thought because someone knocked my door.

"Junko, it's me. I know you're there," Collette sniffled. "Please talk to me."

I huffed and stood. I opened the door a crack and her tear streaked face greeted me. She looked upset and guilty. So she should. I couldn't bring myself to hate her though. I invited her in and she ghosted past me.

For the first few minutes, we sat in silence. Me, in the chair and her perched on the edge of my bed.

"I'm sorry." She murmured.

"H-how long were you with him?" I asked, ignoring her.

"It's been a couple of months." She replied.

"And Victoria?" I couldn't believe I sympathised with Victoria, but I did.

"She found out the other day." Collette confirmed.

So, when I'd seen Victoria fuming the other morning, she'd evidently discovered Hunter's betrayal. It also explained why Hunter looked so down the other day too.

"Junko, I'm sorry. I asked Liam and he said-"

"So, everyone knew. Everyone but me." I cut her off.

Wow, that stung quite badly. So, I was the last to know. Hunter knew because he was the cheat, Liam knew and Victoria obviously found out the hard way. I wondered if her pain was equal to or more than mine. Like some weird math equation.

"I wanted to tell you." She shrieked, hysteria taking over.

"Why didn't you then?" I snapped, growing flustered.

"Hunter wanted to spare your feelings." She sobbed.

"Wow, thanks. I suppose I should be grateful." I replied, eyes stinging.

Hunter had obviously known I'd liked him. I mean I'd made it obvious the times I'd been around him. I just hadn't out right told him.

"Plus you were with that other guy." Collette snapped, like she thought it excused her behaviour.

"He's a friend. I would have told you if he'd been something more," I whispered. "I would of come to you for advice."

Her face paled and she seemed to realise the implication behind my words. I would have trusted her, but she couldn't return the sentiments.

"So, you still like Hunter?" She said, eyes becoming steely.

"No." I murmured.

Her face relaxed, like she thought I was no longer competition. I wasn't even in with a chance in the first place. The silence stretched on and I shifted in my chair.

"You should go." I said, and she looked torn, but rose to her feet.

There was no fight. She left and I didn't bother to do anything. I didn't stop her and I continued to stare at the carpet. Finally, after fighting it, my eyes started to water. The tears that came were like an out pouring.

Crying helped. I cried because of Collette's betryal. I cried because I had finally gotten over Hunter, but it still burned. Once my sobs had subsided I rubbed my sore eyes. I glanced to the bracelet on my arm and thought of the one person that I was falling for. Should I contact him? No, I didn't want to be seen like this.

 

*************************

 

College was a big no-no the next morning. I actually phoned in. Something I hadn't done since my first week here when I'd ended up with food poisoning after a celebratory meal with my Aunt.

I woke at around eleven and decided to type some of my reports up. It gave me something to focus on. After an hour of typing, someone knocked my door. I guessed it was Collette coming to see why I wasn't at lunch.

"Go away, Collette." I called.

"Not Collette, but if you insist." Keith's voice came from the other side.

I moved quickly and opened the door. Keith was on the other side. He smiled when I answered.

"Hungry?" He asked, presenting me with some donuts.

My stomach felt hollow and I shook my head. He frowned and seemed to sense something was off, but said nothing.

"So, can I come in?" He grinned.

"Yeah, I guess so." I moved aside.

The door shut with a click and he sat down on the bed, taking in my room. I sat in my chair and faced him.

"Just come to update you," He said. "The lights in the forest were fae. Markers have been put around the area so even the most spiritual human can't see them."

"Awesome, that's good." I smiled at last.

"Onto the next mission now. There's a college about an hour away from here that wants to demolish the old building next to it. Been a lot of issues though. Construction work has been abandonned till it gets sorted."

I guessed we'd be heading there next. I nodded and prepared myself for this.

"So, we're going on Saturday?" I asked.

"Yep, we are." He replied.

A sense of not wanting to be alone hit me and I shuffled nervously. I was aware that I was wearing my scruffy jeans and an oversized jumper, but I wanted to be anywhere but here.

C-can I come back with you?" I asked.

"Yeah, I mean, I have a mission to go to, but Tris won't mind you hanging out." Keith replied.

Leaving the human world behind was like escaping my problems. Keith said goodbye and I was left in the foyer. Tris was nowhere in sight. Was it a bad idea to do what I was doing? It was the worst idea. I walked down the hallway and up a flight of stairs.

When I got to Chris's office I debated on whether or not I should leave. I raised my hand to knock and the door opened. A guy with dark hair and a beard stood in front of me. His eyes were brown too, but lacked warmth. He stared at me like I was a speck of grit.

"I-i'm here to see Chris." I murmured.

"And what business would a human have with a legion leader?" The guy snapped.

What to say? I opened my mouth and felt the burn in my cheeks. This guy was my reality check. Why was I here again? I wasn't good enough for Chris. This guy knew it. In fact the whole world probably knew it.

"How'd you get here, anyways?" The guy demanded, tone brisk.

"Junko?" Chris appeared behind the guy, approaching me.

The bearded guy turned his attention to Chris, eyes demanding an explanation. I nodded and looked at Chris. His lips tilted slightly, but he became stern when faced with beard-guy's glare.

"Miss Misaki works for me." He said, and Beard-Guy looked shocked for a whole second, before looking agitated.

"I see. And what does she do?" Beard-guy asked.

"She is what Evangeline is to you, Eric." Chris sounded angry, but he hid it quite well.

Beard-Guy, or Eric, nodded and seemed to accept this. He still regarded me with distaste, but there was a look in those eyes that made me incredibly scared. Eric walked away, glancing back at me every so often.

"Who is Evangeline?" I asked. First stupid question of the day.

"It doesn't matter," He replied, still sounding like he wanted to murder someone. I backed away and he seemed to sense I was uneasy. "Why don't you come in."

It wasn't a request. I trailed after him. He was in his suit again. I smiled when I saw the snowglobe on the desk. I also recalled the almost-kiss. Chris sat down on the couch and motioned for me to join him. I hesitated, not wanting to seem too forward. Just because we'd shared a moment didn't mean we were suddenly a couple. I sat down, making sure I was far enough away.

"You look poorly." Chris stated. Wow, blunt.

"Y-yeah, Collette and I spoke." I replied.

"And she's sorry?" He asked.

"Not really. I think we're in a fight," I murmured. "Kinda like a couple of children, really."

I did register that my problems were childish. I was so young and nothing more than a kid to Chris. I kept my eyes lowered onto my hands. They were trembling.

"We should discuss what happened last night." His tone changed, and I winced.

Here it comes. The second rejection in as many hours. Hunter's was less direct, but at least this time I get to feel the full brunt of it. If I could have lowered my head more then I would have. My eyes stung again and humiliation welled up inside my small body.

The couch shifted and I felt his cold hand grip my chin. Stubbornly, I refused to raise my head. If I couldn't see it then I could pretend and salvage some feelings at least.

"You're not going to look at me." He said, and I heard the amusement.

I allowed my face to be lifted. We were inches apart and I could see the crimson in his eyes. I could see the way the light glinted off his lip piercings.

"This time we won't be interrupted." He murmured.

I didn't have much chance to register the meaning in those words because his lips were on mine, claiming me. The humiliation was pushed aside as a wave of confusion swept over me. Chris seemed to sense that I wasn't responding. I was so nervous. The tremble in my hands had travelled up my arms.

The hand that had been gripping my chin grasped one of my hands and lifted it to drape around his shoulders. My other hand followed suit and I finally snapped out of my daze to respond tentatively. The kiss deepened and I pressed my hands against his chest when I felt his tongue brush my lower lip. I pushed and we came apart.

My eyes were wide and he chuckled, leaning forward and kissing my again, softly this time, pulling apart to press our foreheads together.

"W-what was that?" I panicked then.

Where was the rejection? It hadn't happened and it left me reeling. I demanded an explanation and yet I don't think my mind could processed one.

"We kissed." Chris said, like we were discussing the weather.

Casual. The casualness of it threw me and I pulled back fully. In my world, people would kiss casually all the time. Sometimes, relationships were things that benefited people in one way only. I wasn't completely naive. Was I going to enter into that kind of relationship?

"I-i can't kiss you like that again." I whispered.

"You didn't like it?" Chris said, sounding terse.

I glanced up at him and let out a shaky breath, followed by a few tears. No, not now. Don't cry now, stupid. The couch shifted again and I felt his hand coil into my hair, tilting my face so we could look at each other. His eyes had shifted in emotion and there was concern there. His fingers traced through my hair, massaging my head.

"You want us to be togther." He murmured, and I looked at him finally, nodding. He smiled then.

"I'm crap though." I mumbled.

"No, you're not," He replied, leaning down, brushing our lips together. "You're beautiful."

"No, I look like like a troll." I laughed.

"Junko, take the compliment for once, will you." He chuckled.

This was probably a bad idea. There were a myriad of reasons why this would probably go bad, but I was too thick-headed to think of them.

"We do need to establish some rules though," Chris said. Of course we did. "No one outside of this unit must know and this will progress slowly."

I nodded and met his eyes then.

"So, you're my-" I had no idea.

"I'm not your boyfriend. That's absurd. Lover would be accurate." He replied.

"Lover sounds too formal. Boyfriend, please?" I asked, and he grinned.

"Aren't you a little old to be calling anyone a boyfriend? I thought that was reserved for children." Chris said.

"Well, you're the first person I've called boyfriend." I mumbled.

Someone tapped at the door and I pulled back. Chris kept his hand on mine and Tris entered, smiling when she saw me. If she saw our hands, she said nothing, only grinned wider.

I couldn't help but feel something bad was going to happen, but for now I wanted to live in bliss and pretend everything was all right.

 

 


	9. Night Nine

"This is the oldest building on the campus." The dean said.

The building in question was a looming structure that towered over the area. Scaffolding was on one side, making it look like some bizarre skeleton. A few of the windows had been smashed and I couldn't see what was inside.

"How old is this place?" Keith asked.

"It was built in sometime before the Victorian era." The dean, Mr Abbott said.

He was a round man with a thinning hairline and he seemed to sweat more than most humans. He'd met us outside the campus early this morning to give us a tour of the old building. He'd seemed like a man of science since he said he had a PHd in Physics, but clearly he'd experienced something.

"And what phenomena has been reported?" Stevie asked.

Ah yes, Stevie. This was our first meeting this Saturday. When Keith had picked me up, she'd been with him. She was small, possibly just a few inches taller than me with long, blonde hair.

"Well, problems began three months ago when construction started. Parts of the building would collapse on their own. The builders claimed that they could see a face staring at them through the window on the first floor. Things would move on their own." He sounded ever more distressed.

"Were there signs the building was haunted before?" Keith asked.

"No, well, apart from the urban legends spread by children." Mr Abbott replied, mopping his brow.

I glanced across the brown grass towards the building. A figure was standing next to the building, cloaked in the shadow the old building allowed. I could see no features aside from a wide brimmed hat.

"Hey, earth to Junko." Keith said, waving a hand in my face.

"Of course there were rumours that the apparition was the teacher that had commit suicide." Mr Abbott was saying to Stevie.

"What about the man with the hat?" I blurted out.

Mr Abbott looked at me as did Stevie. She frowned at my weird statement. Her gaze went to Keith and he shrugged.

M-man with a hat? I haven't heard that one before." Mr Abbott said.

Eventually he departed, handing Keith the keys. We'd be spending the night in a nearby hotel since this place was far too dangerous to actually inhabit.

"A man with a hat?" Stevie appeared next to me.

"Yeah, he was right next to the building, just sorta watching us." I replied, and a chill went down my spine. Creepy even as I said it.

 

******************

 

The other two went to explore whilst I stayed in the entrance hall. Near the far wall was a flight of stairs that led up to the next floor. A door was at the end of the entrance hall that led directly into the place where church would have been held.

I walked over to the window and I could see the new campus buildings. They were modern and beautiful. A far cry from this place. Nothing popped out at me though. I wondered if I had to be directly in front of a ghost to see it. I wasn't a proper medium then.

My eyes went to my wrist. The bracelet glinted in the morning sun. Tris had kept our secret surprisingly well. I had no idea what I was doing. The bracelet lit up and I pressed one of the panels.

"Hello, Junko." Tris said. Someone was a morning person.

"Good morning." I replied.

"Anything so far?" She asked.

"Nope, nothing, well," I paused. Should I mention the weird hat man?

"Sounded like you had something to add." Chris was there.

I blushed and made some kind of unintelligeble noise. It was half way between a whimper and a groan of pain.

"I-i saw a figure. A guy in a hat." I said.

"A guy in a hat," Chris repeated. I heard the low conversation he shared with Tris. "Junko, be careful."

"What? I'm always careful." I laughed, nervously.

"I'm serious. Please be careful. Don't let yourself be alone." He murmured.

I was alone now and noticed that the hair on my arms was raised. The feeling of being watched made me gulp. A hand landed on my shoulder and I yelped.

"Sorry, sorry." Stevie said, waving her hands in front of herself.

"Why were you watching me just now?" I shrieked.

"Watching you? But I wasn't watching you. I just came round the corner just now." She replied.

Fear lanced through me. If Stevie hadn't been behind me then who was? My mind imagined all sorts of awful things. I shook my head to clear the distressing images.

"Stevie." Chris snapped. Her attention shifted to the bracelet. "Do not leave Junko alone."

 

****************

 

Dusk settled quickly and we actually got some back up in the form of my boyfriend. I was quite surprised when he showed up. We sat out front near the car. Chris sat next to me on the hood of the car.

"I didn't see a guy in a hat." Keith said.

"No, but Junko did and that in itself is worrying." Chris replied.

My eyes went to the building then to Chris. He was inches from me, but wasn't touching me. I settled for staring at my hands. Whilst on the job, I was simply an employee.

"What does it want?" Stevie asked.

"I'm not sure," Chris said. "It's getting late. We'll come back tomorrow."

Tonight seemed like a bad idea. If there was something bad in there then if would surely be waiting for us to do something. I thought Chris might go back to the other world, but instead came to the hotel with us.

"I trust you have no objection to sharing a room." He said, when Stevie and Keith had gone.

"S-sharing a r-room?" I said, flustered.

"It seems like a natural thing for a couple." He murmured, grasping my chin.

"Y-yeah." I agreed.

Sharing a room seemed easier than my brain was making it. I sat on the bed, flicking through tv stations in a vague attempt to avoid conversation. This was what couples did.

"Enough." Chris grabbed the remote, turning the tv off.

I smiled and laid down, taking a steadying breath when he pulled me closer.

"So, will you be coming to all the missions now?" I asked.

"Only the ones where shadow agents try and threaten your life." He replied.

"It was a threat." I pulled back abruptly, only for him to yank me closer.

"It could have been. I'm not sure." Chris stated.

I relaxed again and enjoyed the closeness.

"Sorry if I didn't act like we were together earlier. It's important that your safety isn't compromised." He murmured, toying with my hair.

"It's ok. I understand." I replied.

And I did understand. For now I wanted to spend time with Chris like we were normal. My eyes slipped shut and the world slipped away until it was just the two of us.

 


	10. Night Ten

Going back to the haunted school building was not my ideal way of spending a Sunday. We'd arrived early and I couldn't see anything that looked like what I'd seen yesterday. It did feel like something was wrong with the building though.

"It feels strong." Keith said, standing next to me.

"How strong? Like so strong you can't take it?" I asked.

"It might be. Good thing Chris is here." Keith replied.

I glanced at Chris. He was with Stevie. It turned out she could sense things too, but had been unable to see the figure with the hat. Chris looked towards us and smiled. It was a faint smile. One meant for me. I hurriedly looked away. We'd already had an eventful morning. By eventful, I meant that I hid in the bathroom to dress and hid under the covers when he changed his clothes.

My tiny brain wasn't ready to process what was under the clothes. He was covered in tattoos though, spanning his arms and disappearing under his black t-shirt. And I certainly wasn't ready for him to see under my clothes. He seemed to realise that though.

"What's the protocol now though?" I asked, turning my attention back to Keith.

"We call in another legion leader," Keith said. He bit his lower lip. "The only one available today is Eric though."

Eric, or Beard-Guy as I had dubbed him, was awful. He was intimidating and rude. I tried to keep my face passive.

"How many legion leaders are there?" I had never really asked before.

"There are five. Chris is the youngest. Lemmy is the oldest." Keith replied.

I looked across at Chris again. He was talking to someone using the bracelet on his wrist. His face looked neutral, but I could see the way his eyebrows scrunched together and knew he was angry. He didn't give many emotions away, but this was one of them. He must have been talking to Eric.

We didn't have long to wait after the conversation. Eric arrived accompanied by a girl. She looked like a doll. So perfect and beautiful. Her hair was silver, not grey, but silver. Her eyes were bright blue and crystalline. My eyes went to her neck and noticed she was wearing a collar.

Bile rose in my throat. So, this was Evangeline. It had to be. Her gaze went to me and she must have guessed I was human because her eyes widened a fraction.

"Let's get this over with," Eric snapped. He shoved Evangeline towards me. "Evangeline, stay here and talk to this one."

I glanced at Chris. His face gave nothing away, but his eyes were furious. I slid a little closer to Evangeline. She didn't move, just like a doll. Keith and Stevie followed them towards the building. I was left with Evangline.

"You're human?" I asked, but knew the answer.

"Yes, and so are you." She said, with a voice like an angel.

My eyes went to the collar again and I could see faint marks under it. My eyes burned and I faced forward.

"Is Chris kind to you?" She asked, and I glanced to her. "You don't wear a collar."

"H-he is. Why do you wear that?" I whispered.

"Because I am a slave. I am property." She replied, so casual and collected.

My lower lip trembled. Would I become her? Was this my destiny too? The urge to vomit rose in my throat. The world was closing in on me and I felt like I was going to pass out.

A loud crashing noise interrupted my freak out. A figure flew from the building. It looked like a man with blue tinged skin. A noose was tightened around it's throat. It lunged at Evangeline. Thinking fast, I pushed her away. Before I could move a scythe cut the thing in half. Blood flew everywhere. At least, it looked like blood.

My eyes lifted to see Chris. He was holding the scythe. His eyes, normally brown were pure black. I was frozen in the face of something nightmarish. The scythe disappated and he walked towards me. I didn't back away for some reason.

"Are you afraid?" He asked.

"No, I'm not afraid." I replied.

The silence stretched on. Chris blinked and his eyes returned to normal. I heard footsteps and we both looked round. Keith and Stevie had appeared, looking happy. They high-fived. Eric appeared too, eyes still black. He walked to Evangeline and grabbed her arm.

"Get up, you ridiculous girl." He snarled.

Evangeline whimpered, but stood. Her eyes were closed. I was happy to have saved her, but not for him to treat her like garbage.

"S-stop it." I snapped, covering my mouth when I realised my mistake.

Eric removed his hand from Evangeline and glanced at me. He strolled towards me and I lowered my head.

"What the fuck did you say?" He hissed.

"That's enough, Eric." Chris had stepped in front of me.

"It'll be enough when I find out what your little whore said." Eric said, voice like thunder.

With a glare levelled at me, Eric marched away, grabbing Evangeline by the arm and disappearing with her. I took a shuddering breath and kept my face down. My eyes shifted to Keith and Stevie. They looked bewildered.

The moment was over and I followed as we drove the car back to the warehouses. The drive was silent and I felt stupid and humiliated. We sent the stuff back. I wanted to sneak away, but Chris held my hand.

He waited till Keith and Stevie had gone before actually talking to me. I lowered my face again.

"Are you ok?" He asked, and I nodded.

"What is Evangeline?" I answered with a question of my own.

"A human like you. Except she sold her soul." Chris replied.

"Sold her soul?" I repeated.

I had read fantasy books where humans sold their souls. I had seen The Simpsons episode where Homer sold his soul for a donut. I guessed why people would do it, but how did Evangeline come to end up with Eric.

"Eric was the one she sold her soul to. It is said that Evangeline wanted her loved one to come back from a war so she sold her soul after he died." Chris said.

"Is it normal for humans to become slaves like that?" I murmured, shuffling nervously.

"It is down to the demon what to do with the human." Chris said. He was watching me now, awaiting my response.

"Have you ever had a slave?" Gah, why'd I ask that.

"Yes." He replied. I glanced at him, finally. He was looking away from me.

"Do I have to sell my soul?" I lowered my face again.

"You don't have to do anything you aren't comfortable with." He had stepped closer, one hand on my hip.

I didn't like how Eric treated Evangline, but I could see why Chris had lied the other day, saying I was like Evangeline. Clearly, having a human in this type of relationship was abnormal without the demon owning their soul.

"You always smile at me." I whispered.

"I do. And I hope you always smile at me." He replied, pressing his lips to my hair.

 

************************

 

It sucked to go back to normal life again. I sat with Liam still and would stare at where Collette and Hunter would sit.

"Are you all right?" Liam asked.

His eyes were full of concern. Ghost hunting had been post-poned whilst all the problems were dealt with.

"Yeah, I guess I just feel a little betrayed." I said, rolling a tomato round on my tray.

"I told her to say something when she saw you sitting at the quad that time, but she wanted to act like everything was the same and I told her it wasn't," Liam stated, then he seemed to be thinking. "And it never will be the same."

His boyfriend, Cole agreed, nodding. I didn't bother asking Sara as she and Collette had famously never gotten along and it had been known since they were in high school.

Standing, I made my way to the bin and dumped my salad in and left. Someone tapped my shoulder and I turned to see Victoria. I thought she might try and floor me, but she actually looked guilty.

"Can we chat?" She asked, and I nodded.

We ended up on one of the benches outside the college. Up close, I was alarmed at how normal Victoria looked. Her bleached hair was tied back and she was wearing an off the shoulder jumper.

"I guess you kinda hate me and I don't blame you." She said, gauging my reaction.

"I don't hate you." I replied, and she smiled, weakly.

"I was only mean because I heard you liked Hunter back when we were together. Call it insecurity." She continued.

"I did like him, but never would have done anything." I said, and she nodded.

"You had no idea she was with him?" Victoria asked, with no malice, just curiosity.

"Nope. I was the last to know." I said, tone slightly bitter.

Victoria's small frame untensed and she sighed, staring at the campus. I glanced at her. She looked tired and I still couldn't help but feel for her.

"I can only apologise to you." She murmured.

"You don't have to. I'm sorry for what happened." I replied, and she smiled again.

"Thank you," She held out a hand. "Friends?"

Wow, that was unexpected. I accepted and she looked relieved, like she thought I might just turn her down and leave her sitting here.

The sky darkened and the first few drops of rain fell. The two of us rushed towards the dorm and walked in together. I left Victoria and went to my room, watching the rain as it ghosted down the glass.

 


	11. Night Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the reads and the nice comment and the kudos. Much appreciated.

 

I actively avoided most people over the course of the week. October was in full swing and all around the campus people were readying themselves for Halloween. Pumpkin streamers were hung from the stairs of dorms. Victoria put some carved pumpkins out front of ours along with a black cat, hackles rasied and eyes red.

My entire life felt like Halloween. Since the other night I'd not seen the shadow with the hat and I had ruled it as a freak mistake. Like the ghost of the old building had been trying to scare me. I bought a paper and discovered they'd knocked the old building down and were starting renovations.

"I never noticed how alone you are." Victoria said.

She'd appeared behind me, hand flat against the wall. Dark bags were under her eyes, but she'd tried to hide them. She was alone too though. Ever since she and Hunter had broken up, she'd avoided her friends.

"You too." I murmured.

"My 'friends'," She said, sarcastically. "Are friends with Hunter. Michaela is Hunter's best friend's girlfriend."

I'd actually found out a lot about Victoria recently. She'd taken to coming to my room and chatting with me. Hunter had been her first boyfriend and she had been so insecure, constantly questioning whether she was good enough. In a lot of ways we were similar.

In not so many words I'd discussed Chris with her and she'd listened. I couldn't believe I was asking her advice instead of Collette. I'd glossed over many details though, like how my boyfriend was a demon. That might scare her.

"So, are you seeing your boyfriend tonight?" She asked, casually.

"I dunno." I replied, and she sighed.

"You so should. Spend time together, get to know each other, communicate." She murmured, glancing away.

"Will you be ok?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Yeah, Andrea and I are gonna have a film marathon. You go and have fun."

When I got to my room, I lifted the arm with the bracelet on. I had never travelled alone. I had been tinkering with it and I think I'd figured out how it worked. I still hated the sensation as I was removed from my world.

Instead I found myself face-planting the ground. Well, that was smart. I groaned in pain and tried to force my small body to move.

"Woah, there. You ok, kid?" A voice above me.

I rolled over. I had mis-timed it and was outside. The sky above my head was purple. A face appeared in my line of sight. A man. His eyes were brown and slightly hooded, face partially obscured by a cowboy hat.

"What happened?" I mumbled.

"Looks like you miscalculated where you were gonna end up. Fuckin' transport bracelets," He fumed, then held up a hand. "How many fingers am I holdin' up?"

"Three." I replied.

"A thumb don't count." He chuckled, but held out a hand.

His hand was freezing, like a block of granite. He must have realised that my hand was warm and I had a pulse.

"Thank you. Where am I, sir?" I asked.

"Sir?" He snorted a laugh. "You're in the Netherworldlian grounds for the legions. I am no 'sir'"

So, I'd ended up near where I'd needed to be, but which huge building was it. I'd never been outside. I could ask this total stranger.

"Do you know which building Chris is in?" I asked.

The guy snapped his fingers, "You're the little human he's with, ain't ya."

How did this guy know? No one should know. Had I been careless. Chris would be furious. I must have looked frightened because the guy let out a hearty laugh.

"Beatrice told me. She tells me everything," He chuckled. "My name is Lemmy."

Lemmy? The oldest legion leader. He didn't look old. He looked about late fifties. I didn't want to be rude and ask though.

"You're the oldest legion leader." I stated.

"That's me. I'll bet you're wonderin' how old I am." He said, clearly awaiting my guess.

"Well I have no idea how old Chris is, so.." I trailed off, and he frowned.

"He's the youngest at 850 years," Lemmy replied, and I nearly choked on my own spit. "I'm 1700, well 1789, but I like to lie and be younger."

Yeah, wouldn't want you feeling that old now, would we. I managed a feeble smile and Lemmy grinned.

"Anyways, I'll take you to your boy, then I can cadge a drink off him." Lemmy said.

I followed as he walked. He insisted I walk by his side, telling me I wasn't a slave or a scullery maid. He led me down a winding path and through the entrance of one of the buildings. I guessed we were in the right one. I knew we were when he led me up the flight of stairs and down the hallway. He knocked the door with such force I thought it might splinter.

And then he just opened it without permission, like a parent entering a child's room. Chris was sitting at the desk. He was wearing a suit as usual and looked elegant as always.

"Found your girl face-down outside." Lemmy said, rather loudly.

Chris noticed me and I managed a small wave. He got up and walked towards me. We stood side by side but made no move to embrace. Lemmy watched us, growing fidgety.

"Tris told me." He said, plainly.

Chris was watching Lemmy and was obviously deciding whether to trust him. Eventually he laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Sorry, I kinda don't know how to use the bracelet properly." I murmured.

"So much so that you ended up hurting yourself." Chris smirked.

"I'm fine. See, no bruises." I showed my pale arms.

Lemmy was tinkering with some bottles across the way. He turned, raising a glass and disppearing out the door, closing it quietly.

"What made you come here?" Chris asked, seating himself on the couch.

I sat next to him and shrugged, blushing when he quirked a brow at me. Communication wasn't my strong point.

"I missed you." I smiled.

"Again, I missed you and your stammering too." He replied, chuckling.

"Think you're so smart with your sarcasm and wit, don't you." I shot back.

"I suppose I am." He leaned forward, and I backed up.

"Supposed to be going slow, fam." I said, nervously.

"I'm going very slowly with you. More slowly than I'd like, given how much I want you." He smirked again, something feral within those eyes.

"Haha, you're so funny." I said.

"I wasn't aware I was joking."

Quick, change the subject before he devours me. I did wonder what they did for fun around here. It was a world I knew very little about.

"So, what is there to do around here, besides hunt ghosts?" I asked.

"We have television," Chris stated, and laughed when I pulled a face. "What? You think that humans are more advanced.

"I want to see the television." I said.

Walking down the hallways and up several flights of stairs, we entered a room. It was quite grand and painted a deep crimson. Wow, fancy.

"This is amazing. What room is this?" Probably shouldn't ask that.

"This is my room." Chris replied, and I vaguely registered the door closing.

Yep, I was totally safe. My boyfriend wasn't about to eat me. So, this was where he came when he wasn't doing whatever bosses do. The bed was massive. Opposite the bed was a large, flat screen tv. Really?

Chris sat on the bed and glanced at me. I walked over and sat next to him. His arm automatically wrapped round my shoulders, pulling me close. My tummy flipped and I took a steadying breath. He was holding a complicated looking remote.

"So, that's the tv remote?" I stated.

"It is. These can connect to any station in the universe."

Wow, now I realised how vast this was. Any station? Anywhere.

"Japan?"

"I did just say anywhere, did I not, Junko," He glanced at me, eyes locked with my own, face inches from mine. "Maybe I should punish you for not listening."

"N-nope, all stations. I-i'm totally great." I stammered, and he chuckled.

His attention shifted from me and he pressed some of the buttons and an anime appeared on screen in Japanese. He was watching it with interest.

"Do you know what they're saying?" I asked, wondering if he understood.

"Demon languages are universal so I do understand them." He responded.

I was stunned for a moment. I blinked stupidly for a minute before recovering. I was quite curious about him now. What new information could I unearth about Chris?

"You're going to start badgering me with questions, aren't you, Junko?" He said, shifting so his dark eyes were locked with my own again.

"W-well, if that's ok," I murmured, blushing. He shrugged. "You're 850."

"Correct, just under actually."

"Y-you said the other day you'd had a slave too."

I waited for the shut down. For him to end the conversation, but he didn't. Those same dark eyes that looked at me with many emotions, flickered for a second.

"I did. Past tense. She ended her own existence."

I was stunned into silence. She'd killed herself? Why? I didn't want to belive it was something she'd done because of Chris, so I didn't.

"How come?" I asked.

"Someone violated her and she chose to cut the contract with me. It meant that she would die, but ultimately it was her decision." He replied, looking away.

I didn't press for anymore details. It was obvious he'd loved this girl. A part of me felt intensely sad for him and for her. Another part was a little jealous that she'd been here first and knew him before I did. I looked away to avoid his eyes. I didn't want to be seen as a brat.

"S-sorry I shouldn't have-" I felt my voice catch in my throat.

The tv was forgetten as I felt the bed shift and he sat in front of me, legs crossed, knees touching mine. One hand lifting my face to look at him. The faintest of smiles on his lips.

"You need to know about me. Just like I want to know about you." He replied, brushing my hair behind my ear.

"What would you like to know?" I asked, biting my lip.

"Anything. Everything." He smiled.

"Well, I'd be happy to share." I said, hesitating when I lifted my hand.

My fingers trembled slightly. I set my hand down again and shifted. That night I stayed with him. We talked about all sorts of things. I asked questions. I talked about my parents. When I checked my phone I realised it was three thirty in the morning.

 


	12. Night Twelve

 

Halloween was upon us and on the Wednesday before, my lectures for the next two days were cancelled. Turned out that Janice, our lecturer had come down with severe gastro-enteritis. Good news for students. Bad news for Janice. I was content to ignore everyone and finish an essay.

On Thursday, I wanted to venture to the cafe and grab some coffee, but decided not to when I spied Collette with Hunter. I couldn't avoid them forever so I did go out. Bad decision. I had gotten to the cafe and ordered my drink when someone tapped on my shoulder.

I turned round and was face-to-face with Hunter. I shuffled nervously. How bad would this go? Where was Collette?

"We need to talk." He said, and I thought about running.

I nodded and followed him to a booth. I sat opposite him and tried not to look at him. My eyes did glance at him as he typed something on his phone. His eyes were hazel. A month or so ago I would have savoured that information and dreamed of looking into them. Now I felt nothing. Not a twinge of the crush I'd had before. I barely noticed that Hunter had stopped typing and was looking at me.

"Collette told me that you'd both fallen out." He stated, very matter-of-factly.

"Y-yes, we did." I replied.

"Look, I get it. You like me and you're jealous," He said, and I felt my face literally pale. "But it's not Collette's fault."

Was he seriously saying this? He'd cheated on his girlfriend. Then he and Collette had kept it from everyone, only allowing Liam to find out, but not to tell a soul. I narrowed my eyes. Had I seriously liked Hunter? It struck me that I barely knew him all this time. Had he always been so conceited?

"Actually, I don't like you anymore," I said, not really looking at him. "Collette betrayed me by not confiding in me and you hurt Victoria."

"Yeah right. I always saw you looking at me like a love-sick idiot," He snapped. "And Victoria's not innocent."

I could well believe Victoria wasn't innocent, but did she deserve what he'd done? No way, she didn't. He was just trying to justify it to himself.

"You're not the person I thought you were. I also have a boyfriend." I replied, glancing away.

"A boyfriend? You?" Hunter scoffed.

Turning my gaze back to him, I parted my lips to speak, but no words would come out. Was I seriously going to allow him to speak to me like that? I guessed I was and I slumped a little.

"You know what, I suggest you stay away from Collette and from me," Hunter continued. "Stalker."

I winced at his tone. I had never stalked him. Never tried to over-step my boundaries. I wouldn't have dared. I looked at the table and my eyes burned. A hand landed on my shoulder and I jumped. I looked to Hunter and his face had paled considerably.

"And I suggest you apologise." Chris, my eyes lifted and I saw him next to me.

His dark eyes were locked on Hunter. He was wearing casual clothes again, looking human. How did he find me? Hunter must have put the puzzle pieces together and stood up, maybe intending to continue the fight, but backing up when he saw that Chris was taller. Instead, he backed up and turned, briskly walking away.

"Pathetic," Chris murmured, sitting opposite me. "Your friend, Victoria told me you were here."

"O-oh, right. Sorry about that." I whispered.

"Don't apologise when it's not your fault." Chris smiled, reaching towards me, tucking some hair behind my ear.

"Well, I am sorry you had to see that." I replied, looking into his eyes briefly.

"Was he the one that cheated on Victoria?" He asked.

I nodded, "He didn't believe you were my boyfriend. Sometimes, I can't believe it either."

"I wish you wouldn't call me your boyfriend. It sounds like we're both teenagers." Chris chuckled.

"Well, you could do with losing a few hundred years, like just shave them away." I laughed.

"Thanks for making me sound old. It really endears me to you, Junko." Chris replied, raising a brow at me.

Yeah, well he made me sound like a teenager when I was twenty-one. I was a fully grown adult. And he was an 800-something demon.

"Whoever does your surgery does it so well." I blurted out. Yeah, that was dumb.

I found my self running out the shop. He gave chase and managed to catch me, grabbing me round the waist and spinning me slightly till we both laughed. The bracelet on his arm beeped and we both stopped. Chris let go and pressed one of the panels.

"Sorry, just me." Tris' voice said.

"Hey Tris." Chris said, grabbing me before I could sneak off.

I shrieked and heard Tris laugh a little. I stopped and listened as she spoke. Something about a new mission tomorrow. At St. Catherine's Institute. I knew that place. It was the private school on the edge of town.

"Junko, you should go." Tris said.

"Yeah, sure let me just ask the old ball and chain." I joked, shrieking again when Chris tickled my side.

"Send me the details and I'll review it," Chris said, narrowing his eyes at me when I pouted. "And then I'll decide if it's safe for Junko."

"Will do." Tris replied.

 

**************************

 

Turned out the job was relatively safe for me. I got a taxi to St.Catherine's the following morning. I gasped when the taxi rounded the corner. The school was massive and the spire pierced the clouds. It looked more church than school. It was a strange mixture of modern and ancient. The two blended in a way that made it uncanny.

I paid the driver and he smiled, wishing me luck. Turned out the school was famous for being strict. I climbed out, dragging my suitcase with me. As I approached I noticed a familiar figure waiting for me.

"Keith?" I smiled, and he looked over, grinning.

Keith was not alone though. There was a girl and another guy. The girl wasn't Stevie. This girl was a few inches taller than me. Her hair was red and in the morning sun, orange flecks danced across it. The guy was taller than Keith, maybe not as tall as Chris. His eyes were brown though and his hair was curly and jet black. He looked almost elven.

"Junko, let me introduce you to Hayley," Keith pointed to the girl and she waved. "And Michael."

Michael raised a hand and smiled. Two more members of Chris' team. Hayley seemed a little more open and rushed over, linking her arm with mine.

"Pleased to meet you." She grinned.

We all looked round when we heard heels clacking on the ground. A woman and a man were approaching. The woman was plump and smiling. The man was tall and scowling.

"Welcome, welcome to St. Catherine's Institute," The woman gushed. "I am Helen Carr, the principal. And this is Mr. Johnson, vice principal."

Keith approached and held out a hand. Helen seemed agreeable and even excited. She clearly didn't suit a school this fancy. She shook each of her hands vigorously. Mr. Johnson, however, did not. He continued to look displeased.

"Please follow me." Helen smiled.

We all walked behind her whilst she gave a brief history of the school and its founders. I noticed that Keith had bought equipment, like ghost hunting stuff. We were pretending to be paranormal investigators. How ironic.

Helen welcomed us to her office and motioned for us to take a seat on the sofa. I perched next to Hayley and waited. Mr. Johnson also came in and floated by the door, like some creepy, scowling shadow.

"I suppose I should give you a run down of everything thus far," Helen said, clapping her palms together. "Your boss spoke to me and I relayed information to him. What do you all know?"

"We know you've had some issues with mysterious events around the school." Hayley said.

"That's correct. The events are as follows."

And the list began. Helen filled us in on when it first began. It all happened when a fire started in one of the empty classrooms, then students began seeing things lurking in the hallways. More fires were started, some minor and some that caused injury to people.

"Can you think of anything that may have triggered the events?" Keith asked.

"W-well, actually," Helen sounded nervous.

She rushed to her drawer and fiddled around. I leaned forward, watching her. She walked back, holding a crumpled piece of paper in her hands. My eyes scanned over it. There were symbols on the paper and I frowned.

"A Ouija board?" Michael murmured, his voice was soft.

I glanced at it again and noticed it's layout was indeed like a Ouija board. How could this contribute to what had been happening though?

"A student by the name of Daniel started the trend and students all round the school have been playing it. We've tried to stamp it out, but it's been difficult." Helen said, scrunching the paper up.

"Would it be possible to have a talk with Daniel?" Keith asked, and Helen looked stricken.

"That would be impossible. Daniel Sloan killed himself last week."

I think everyone, except Helen and Mr. Johnson, gasped. He was dead. This boy who had started this whole thing. I glanced at Mr. Johnson to see him simmering in the corner.

"And what do you expect these people to do, Helen?" Mr. Johnson finally snapped.

We all looked at him. He was staring us all down, eyes wild. Helen looked away and sighed. She was clearly at her wits end and this wasn't helping.

"We will get to the bottom of this." Hayley smiled, hoping to lighten the mood.

"I doubt that. And what if another student dies. Have you considered that, Helen? Or are you so caught up in the fun of a ghost hunt?" Mr. Johnson sneered.

"This is hardly fun, Mr. Johnson. My students are in danger and I intend to get to the bottom of it." Helen said, squaring her shoulders.

She sounded way more stern, like the principal she was meant to be. Mr. Johnson sensed this and scowled, turning and leaving. The door slammed and I flinched at the sharp sound.

"Please forgive him. He's worried." Helen said, managing a nervous smile.

"It's fine," Keith replied, waving her off. "We'll go get the equipment."

It was a Friday so classes were still in session. Students were clearly interested and I caught some of them watching us as they passed to and from lessons. We'd get a chance to speak to them soon though as they had classes right up till Saturday. Seemed kinda cruel, having only one day off.

We set up base in an unused classroom. The equipment was all new and shiny. Nothing like the camcorders and cheap EMF meters that Liam had. This was a real ghost hunt. With demons. We'd start interviews tomorrow morning.

 


	13. Night Thirteen

 

My neck clicked slightly as I woke up. I'd spent the night asleep in a car. It was a pretty weird way to wake up. Hayley was next to me, eyes still closed. Rain lashed against the windows and I sighed.

"Sleep well?" Keith said.

He was sitting, knees on the car seat, leaning forward. He looked happy. I didn't know whether demons required sleep. I was guessing they did. We had been invited to use the school's facilities.

This meant having breakfast. I opted for eating in the base room. Being around the students made me nervous, but then being in this school made me nervous. I kept seeing things out of the corner of my eye. I thought I saw a gnarled, smirking face staring at me whilst in the canteen line.

I only felt safe in the base room. Breakfast was porridge. The students here were lucky in some ways. They could come in, have breakfast and start their classes. Saturday lessons lasted till one and then the interviews would begin. Keith and Hayley were going to interview all the students affiliated with Daniel.

Michael and I were to speak to the students that had had paranormal experiences. The activity seemed to affect only those that had played with the Ouija boards.

Time seemed to drag and I filled the hours, finishing my essay on my lap top, whilst the others explored the school. When it got to one, the bells rang and the madness started. Michael arrived back and sat with me. I noticed he was very quiet and wondered if that was shyness. Maybe we had stuff in common.

The first student walked in. She was a young girl, about sixteen. She glanced at me and smiled, seating herself opposite us. Her story was about discovering the fire in the empty classroom. She stated, with a totally straight face, that the fire had resembled a face. She still had nightmares.

We interviewed more students. One after the other including some that were friends of Daniel, whilst Keith and Hayley took a break.

The final student was a boy. He looked almost feral. He sat down and stared me down. He was creepy.

"N-name?" I asked.

"Chad Smith." He replied.

"And to what degree have the events at this school affected you?" I continued. He was staring at me like a snake.

"Daniel and I created the game." He grinned then.

"Bit of a stupid thing to do." Michael cut in, all shyness gone.

I doubted there was shyness. His dark eyes were narrowed in a glare. Gulping, I looked back to Chad.

"Not really. Daniel and I wanted to curse this entire school. Burn it to the ground." Chad said, snapping his gaze back to me.

He was serious. Legitimately, serious. He and Daniel had actually thought that this was a good idea. My mouth opened and I stared at the boy in front of me. He seemed so calm about the whole thing. His gaze went to me again.

"And what do you think you can do?" Chad smirked, leaning forward.

His hand shot out to touch my face, but Michael was quicker and caught his knuckle in a vice-like grip. Chad seemed surprised by that, eyes widening slightly at the speed. I glanced at Michael.

"You should leave." He said. The pupils of his eyes had dilated so much that the brown was replaced by black. Chad whipped his hand back and stumbled away, turning and leaving.

Michael looked to me and his pupils slowly returned to normal and he managed a smile. My mouth must have been open. Well, that was unexpected.

"Well, that was fun." Michael chuckled.

Fun? Are you kidding me? I glowered at him and his brown eyes dulled slightly, like he was bored. Freaking sadist.

"Yeah, if scarring someone for life could be considered fun." I said.

"Oh good, you agree," He smirked. "Let's go get some food."

I watched him get up, belts clinking slightly as he moved. He paused at the door, turning to look at me, eyes still slightly dull.

"You gonna sit there all day?" He asked.

"N-no." I stammered, standing and walking over.

There were still a few students going to and from clubs. It all seemed so mundane. The canteen was quiet apart from a couple of students and Keith. I sat opposite him and he lifted his head, sighing.

"Any luck?" He asked.

"We met some kid who started the trend with Daniel." Michael replied.

"Why'd he start it?" Hayley had reappeared, holding a tray.

"Something about wanting to see the school burn. The usual edgy teen angst." Michael said, shrugging.

Keith frowned and dug around in his pocket. He pulled out a sheet of paper and I realised it was one of the make-shift Ouija boards. The markings on it were so strange though. He pushed it towards me. I glanced down and realised that it was Hiragana. How'd these students learn about Japanese stuff?

"It's Hiragana. I can understand spoken Japanese, but not written." Keith said.

I looked at the paper and squinted. It seemed like the typical sort of ouija board. My parents had both grown up in a small town outside Tokyo, but I'd grown up in America. I did remember my cousins telling me ghost stories though. One of them about Kokkuri-san.

"It's a Kokkuri-san." I replied.

Hayley stared at me, eyes wide. I guessed I was going to have to explain the rules of the game to them. My cousin's had tried to rope me into playing with them, but I was always too scared.

"It is like a ouija board, but Kokkuri-san is a trickster and will lie." I repeated what my cousins had said.

"Most demons lie. We're not known for being truthful." Michael stated.

"Well, the legend says that if you play this you must say goodbye to Kokkuri-san, spend the money used and dispose of the pen used to write the hiragana." I said, pausing a moment.

"And say someone doesn't do all of that?" Hayley asked.

"My cousin told me that it can unleash a death curse on the recipients." I said, shuddering a little.

Keith's eyes had widened and he seemed to be putting the puzzle together. The fires and all the paranormal events seemed to make sense now. The curse was rebounding onto the students. Chad and Daniel had clearly intended for this to happen.

The sound of screaming interrupted our discussion and I glanced round. I got up when the others did and followed them to the source of the screams. It was a classroom. Keith pushed the door open. The classroom was like a studio, like a drama room.

In the centre of the room was a massive fire. It's flames licked the ceiling. A group of girls were across the way, huddled in the corner, frozen in fear. I looked at the flames and nearly screamed too when I saw the same gnarled features staring at me. Hayley rushed past the flames and started guiding the girls out to safety, pulling me along too.

By this point, the fire alarms had started and we made it outside. There were students gathered on the grass. I looked back at the school. Keith and Michael were still in there. Helen appeared, looking flustered.

"Are you all right?" She asked.

"Yes, miss," One of the girls replied, shivering. "We were rehearsing and the fire started out of nowhere."

It seemed like hours, but was in fact, minutes. Keith and Michael reappeared, unharmed. Relief coursed through me. I don't know why I was so worried. They were immortal. Nothing would harm them.

"Don't look so freaked out. You'll catch flies with your mouth open like that." Michael sighed.

The blare of fire alarms made us all look round. The fire department stormed the building, but by the time they got to the room, the flames had gone. All that remained was a burnt ceiling and floor. Smoke had damaged most of the stuff in the studio. The fire chief seemed at a loss for words.

"This is becoming dangerous." Keith said.

The students were huddled together. Helen was trying to reassure them, but seemed at a loss. I noticed Chad across the way. He looked calm and was smiling. A shiver coursed through my bones. What kind of person had Daniel been?

It started raining again and Helen seemed to compose herself in time to send the students home. She would need to talk to the teachers so she sent us away too. We sat in the car and I glanced at Hayley.

"How do we end the curse?" She asked.

Couldn't demons control the curse? Was there really nothing they could do?

"Can't you attack the spirit?" I asked.

"It's not that simple. We could engage the trickster in combat, but it would come back. It wants equivalent exchange. It answered their questions, but they did not hold their end of the bargain." Michael stated, dragging a hand through his hair.

"What do we give it though?" I whispered. The car felt like it was closing in.

Hayley shook her head. Keith sighed and glanced towards the school through the streaked glass.

"Let's go to a hotel near here and I can contact the boss." He said.

 

*******************

 

The hotel was Hayley's choice. It was a beautiful building. She'd contacted Chris whilst we drove there. I was on edge the whole time. He hadn't really spoken to me in front of people before. I knew I was an employee, but it still stung a little.

We had to run from the car to the hotel due the sheer volume of rain. When we got into the foyer, we were soaked. The weather made me feel glum. I glanced across the way to see a couple holding hands and laughing. My eyes burned temporarily and I followed Hayley when she touched my arm.

"Hey, are you all right?" She asked.

"Yeah, don't worry. I'm fine." I said, faking a smile.

She didn't look convinced though and took my hand. Chris was here and so was Eric. My god, could this day get any worse. Evangeline was here, standing next to Eric. She was wearing a dress and her silver hair was tied back, but my eyes kept flicking to her collar.

"Well, don't you all look pathetic." Eric chuckled.

His gaze landed on me, clearly wondering how Chris and I would interact. He looked smug when Chris didn't speak to me. I tried to keep my features neutral though, like I didn't care.

"It's a death curse. Junko figured it out." Michael snapped, glaring at Eric.

I was alarmed by his sudden defending of me. Michael glanced at me and smiled slightly. I side-ways looked at Chris and he looked away when I did. I lowered my face.

"The students didn't perform the rituals properly. This thing is out for murder." Keith said.

"We can't fight it in the traditional sense." Hayley chimed in, squeezing my hand in hers.

"Figured it all out, did you, human?" Eric sneered.

I shrugged and my gaze went to Evangeline. She was beaming at me, like she thought I was an inspiration. So much of an inspiration that my boyfriend doesn't want to look at me. I didn't bother saying anything.

"Trouble in-" Eric was about to say.

"Tired. I'm just tired, is all." I murmured.

Keith was looking at me now and concern traced over his features. He rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'll get us checked in." Hayley smiled, hugging me.

"K." I said, simply.

I let her drag me away and when we were far enough away, she glanced at me then back to the guys, making sure we were a good distance.

"So spill it. What's wrong?" She asked.

"I can't say." I mumbled.

Her eye brow went up and she seemed to be sussing out that Eric was about to say something. The more she thought about it, realisation dawned on her face. Her gaze softened then and her hand touched my arm.

"You poor, little darling." She murmured.

For some reason, her words snagged something within me and I broke down. She hugged me. We walked hand in hand to the check-in desk. She booked two rooms.

"You go to your room. I have something to do." She reassured me.

I took the key and left, grabbing my suitcase. The elevators in this place were beautiful too. I caught sight of myself in the mirror and saw my own puffy face. I looked young. Far too young to be in a relationship. Maybe that was it. Maybe I was too immature. I was entering a world that was more for adults, but I wasn't fully an adult yet.

Having never been in a relationship, I'd never transitioned the way other girls my age had. The elevator pinged and I walked down the hallway. I slid the card key through the slot and opened the door. Wow.

The bed was kingsize and looked so soft. Next to it were two plush-looking chairs. A flat screen tv was on the wall opposite the bed. What drew my gaze was the window though. The curtains were open and I could see the view of the city. Lights flickered as the rain gave way to a clear evening.

I abandonned my suitcase and sat in one of the chairs, pulling it closer so I could see the view better. All this room for me. It suddenly felt cavernous. I was still in wet clothes so I tore myself from the view and dug around in my case. I'd packed a pair of my favourite PJs, then regretted it when I looked at them.

They were my cat ones. A pair of shorts and a top. The top had a hood. I got undressed and put the PJs on, pulling the hood up and looking at myself in the wall mirror. Wow, cat ears. Very mature. So grown-up. Someone tapped at the door and I glanced round. Hayley?

I didn't bother to lower the hood. She'd probably humour me and say the PJs were cute. I unlocked the door and flung it open, shrieking when I saw Chris. He didn't seem to notice what I was wearing till I let him in.

"You would be wearing that." He sighed, sitting on the bed.

My face heated up. It felt like it was hotter than the sun. Why was he here? I didn't realise we were sharing a room. I lifted my hand to lower the hood. My eyes went to him and I noticed his eyes moving down my small frame, pupils dilating.

"I-i didn't think you'd be sharing with me." I murmured.

"Hayley sent you up here. She stormed over to me not long ago and started yelling at me." He said, flicking his eyes to meet mine.

I kept my face down, clutching my top in a bid to pull it down over my skinny legs. I didn't expect her to start having a go at her boss.

"Y-yeah. She sent me up here and I thought, I guess.." I mumbled, shrugging.

"Thought I wasn't going to spend time with you." Chris said, and I nodded my assent.

"N-no, well, you ignored me. I know I'm just an employee, I get it." I said, blinking rapidly.

"Perhaps, I should stop treating you like one." He murmured.

I ignored him when he beckoned me over. He rolled his eyes and flicked his finger. My body lifted off the ground. Holy crap. I found myself next to him in seconds. The spell, or whatever eased up and I landed on the bed.

"No fair, what was that?" I pouted, growing annoyed.

"Seemed fair to me." He replied, smirking.

Our knees were touching. I shivered at the small contact and toyed with my top's hemline. Chris' fingers grazed my chin and lifted my face so he could look at me. I sniffled and met his gaze.

"I made you cry." He said, swiping his thumb over my cheek.

"N-no," I protested.

"I did. Hayley told me I did, well she shouted, actually," He replied, thumb still caressing my face. "I'm sorry, Junko."

He was apologising to me. I managed to look at him when his eyes lowered a little. He seemed really upset, almost vulnerable. It was amazing that such a simple thing could elicit such a response.

"It's no big deal." I whispered.

It was early days and whilst I trusted him, I was scared that tomorrow morning, we'd wake up and go downsatirs and he'd be back to ignoring me again. Chris seemed to sense my reluctance. His hand ghosted down and toyed with the hem of my top.

"I like these." He murmured.

I think I moved like road runner in that instance, sliding backwards. The hood was still up. Sheesh. I forgot my legs were on display. Sure, I was wearing clothes, but it felt like I was pratically naked.

Those dark eyes pierced my own, sliding, appraisingly down my body. No one had looked at me like that. I wasn't sure whether to freak out or enjoy it. I'd pretty much already freaked out though.

"C-can I have a hug?" I smiled, nervously.

"How can I hug you when you're all the way over there, Junko?" Chris replied, eyes still dark.

Yep, he was definitely going to devour me. I shifted closer and regretted it instantly. His lips claimed mine. I gasped and my eyes slid closed. His lips moved against my own, teasingly. This time when his tongue brushed my lower lip, I parted my lips. The kiss deepened and I sighed. My hands fisted his jacket, clinging on. One of us clearly had more self-control though.

Chris pulled back first. I looked at him. My lips felt slightly swollen and I felt the redness creep up my cheeks.

"We should stop." He said.

I remembered we were meant to be taking things slowly. Would tomorrow be any different? I guessed I'd have to wait and see.

 


	14. Night Fourteen

 

Warmth enveloped me and I sighed. I was in bed. My eyes opened and took in the room around me. Nope, this wasn't my bedroom. This was a really nice hotel room. Last night came rushing back in a blur of colours and emotions. My eyes flicked down to the arm draped across my side. I tried to angle my head to see Chris' face.

Instead, I shuffled round to look at him. He'd fallen asleep still wearing his suit. The jacket was left abandonned on the back of one of the chairs. I leaned in, watching his features. My hand reached up to skim across his face. I smiled then remembered something. When I woke up yesterday, Keith had already been awake. Hayley had woken up really quickly too. I gulped.

"You're awake, aren't you?" I whispered.

"Yes I am, Junko." Chris replied, and I saw the faint smile on his lips.

"How long?"

"Most of the night."

Welp, time for breakfast. You know the old saying; something about breakfast being important. I shuffled backwards and he must have noticed. His hand tightened, gripping my hip. My eyes went to his, which were now open and staring at me. That same smirk was etched onto his lips.

"Guess there's no escape." He grinned.

I squirmed and then shrieked when Chris rolled us so I was on top. No, no, this was worse. He was using one hand to keep my wrists behind my back. The other hand shot up and grasped my chin, forcing my eyes to meet his.

"Relax. Untense your shoulders." He murmured, and I did as I was told.

"You're so mean." I grumbled.

"I know." He smiled then.

Right. Normally someone wouldn't be so proud about being a jerk. Chris let go of my chin and used his elbow to prop himself up and soon we were face-to-face.

"No, no kissing. My breath smells so bad." I whined.

He shrugged and leaned in, kissing me gently. My fingers tangled in his hair, feeling how soft it was. Something tapped on the door and I pulled back, eyes going towards it.

"Ignore it." Chris said.

"It might be impo-Ow." I yelped when he bit my neck.

Jeeze, what was that? I turned and pouted at him. The knocking grew a little more insistent.

"I know you guys are awake." Hayley called.

Well, that ruined the mood. I heard her laugh when I groaned. Had she known what we were doing? It seemed like that. How'd she get away with talking to her boss like that? I'm sure if I'd have done that when Chris and I first met I would have been in serious trouble.

"It's cute that you guys 'made up'" I heard her giggle.

My face heated up. Something hit the door and I only just realised that Chris had leaned down and thrown his shoe at the door.

"Going away now." Hayley laughed, and I heard her retreating steps.

"Now I have to go pick that up," Chris sighed. "And I'm too lazy."

I'd never heard him say anything like that before. I guess I was still getting to know him. Being in charge must be difficult and incredibly taxing. I glanced back to him and he smiled at me. I would never get tired of seeing that smile. Did Evangeline feel like that about Eric? Had she felt that way too?

"What's wrong?" Chris asked.

I snapped out of my trance and looked at him. He'd let go of my wrists and was watching me, warily. I toyed with my hair and sighed.

"I just like seeing you smile." I replied.

"And that gets you upset, like my smile is so bad that rainbows die, or something." He chuckled.

"N-no, nothing like that. I just wondered if Evangeline liked Eric's smile."

"Impossible. Eric never smiles." Chris smirked, and I actually laughed.

I guessed I wasn't the only one that disliked Eric. The digital clock on the side was reading nine thirty. Chris must have noticed because he slid me off his lap and went to the bathroom. I stayed on the bed and rested my head on my knees.

Eventually, I got off the bed and dug around in my suitcase for something to wear. I glanced at the bathroom door and hurriedly threw on a pair of jeans and a red cardigan top. I stuffed my PJs back in my bag when the bathroom door opened.

"Let's get this over with." Chris said.

He looked elegant as always. I reached down, grabbing the shoe by the door and handing it to him. He accepted and we shared a smile. I took the chance to go to the bathroom, brush my teeth, comb my wild hair and go toilet.

In the corner of the bathroom was a large, circular tub. Wish I'd noticed that last night. My sore neck longed for a soak in the bath. Seriously, I could still feel my neck clicking. I left the bathroom and followed Chris.

Well, we were heading back to the way things would always be. I'd be the employee. I curled my free hand by my side. Something cold gripped my hand and I realised Chris had took my hand, interlocking our fingers. We got in the elevator and I glanced at him.

"A-are you sure?" I murmured.

"I should have never treated you like you were just an employee." He replied, giving my hand a gentle squeeze.

The elevator dinged open and we walked into the lobby. Hardly anyone was around. Hayley was across the way, chatting to Keith. She saw us and waved, smiling broadly. She whispered something to Keith. They both knew. How many people knew?

"Don't they look cute, Michael?" Hayley grinned.

Michael had reappeared. He glanced at his boss and I, shrugging, but smiling at me again. His eyes said it all. He'd known the whole time.

The elevator opened again and Eric appeared. I watched Evangline trail behind him as she walked. Her face was down and my gut twisted painfully. Eric paused and glanced at Chris and I.

"How precious." He sneered.

My face heated up, but Chris just held my hand tighter and ignored Eric, which served to infuriate him.

 

**********************

 

The school was closed on a Sunday, but Helen had allowed us onto the premises. I did wonder what was going to happen now. How would the curse be removed?

"Bring them through." Hayley spoke into her bracelet.

Roger appeared, holding a couple of bags. He set them down and I leaned in to see what was in them. When Roger left, Keith opened one of the bags and showed me a wooden doll.

"A doll?" I asked.

"Yep, look it's got a name on it." Keith smiled.

It did have a name on it. This was interesting. I glanced at Chris again. Had this been his idea?

"These dolls have the name of every student that took part in the Kokkuri-San incident. The curse will be absorbed by these dolls." Chris explained.

Wow, that was really clever. Keith and Michael took the dolls into the assembly hall and lined them up along the benches. They left the building and stood with us.

"Now what?" I asked.

"The spirit should set the curse on the dolls and leave." Hayley grinned.

We waited with baited breath. Something cracked. Like the sound of splintering wood. Keith glanced at Chris and he nodded. The doors were opened and sure enough, a lot of the dolls had sustained damage, some to the point of near destruction.

The air felt clearer though and it felt like the spirit was gone. The dolls were gathered up and set on fire nearby.

"Fire purifies everything." Chris said. His gaze was locked on the flames.

I smiled and watched too. My gaze went to Eric and Evangeline. They were standing two feet apart and not touching. I would have loved to have a full conversation with her, but not with Eric nearby. He seemed to sense my gaze and leered at me. I looked away, back to the dwindling flames.

The fire eventually died and we left. I glanced back and noticed a figure between the trees, wearing a brimmed hat. I jogged to catch up with my friends. When I looked back, it had gone.

 


	15. Night Fifteen

 

November went by quite quickly and I hadn't seen any sign of that weird hatted figure since Halloween. I'd spent November studying and had only been to a few simple missions since. Chris and I had spoken several times, but we'd both been so busy. I missed him.

I pondered this as I sat at my desk, staring at the first snow fall. I'd started my week off by finishing my essays and now had nothing to do. What would normal people do? Someone tapped at my door and I glanced round.

"Hello?" I called.

"Open up, it's me." Victoria shouted back.

I got up and let her in. She smiled and seated herself on the bed. Over the course of a few weeks, she'd started to look better. The black rings under her eyes were gone and she had been happy again.

"How goes the studying, nerd?" She grinned.

"I don't always study." I pouted.

"Are you kidding me. That hot boyfriend of yours will think you don't like him." She teased.

I felt my face heat up and she laughed. She'd seen Chris once and would never let me live it down. I suppose I had been kind of neglectful. He might think I hated him and find someone else. Someone hotter.

"What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" Victoria asked.

"Not much." I replied, shutting my laptop.

It was true. Auntie Makoto would go home to see our extended family and I used to go with her. This year I wanted her to go without me. I felt awkward around my family since my parents death. Facing them reminded me of everything I'd lost.

"What about you?" I asked, not wanting Victoria to ask about my parents.

"Going to see the folks from tomorrow." She said, rolling her eyes.

From what Victoria had said, her parents were loving, but had been concerned for her. They'd disapproved of Hunter. She talked about her parents for a bit and I felt a little down. I wished I could spend the holiday with my parents. I wanted nothing more than for them to be alive still.

"Anyways, I better go and pack." She said, winking at me.

When I was alone again, I stared round my small room. I glanced at the bracelet. Should I? Do demons celebrate Thanksgiving? Would it be presumptive? Where would I sleep? Wait, don't think of that. I got up and grabbed my Hello Kitty rucksack.

Stuffing PJs, clothes, toothbrush and all the necessities inside, I slung the bag on my back. I gripped my wrist and pressed the panels on the bracelet. I'd locked the door after Victoria had left so no one could get in. I closed my eyes and the world around me dissolved.

And I was face down again. On the grass. Sheesh.

"You gotta stop doing this." Lemmy said, helping me up.

"Happy Thanksgiving." I smiled, when I got to my feet.

"Oh yep, human custom. Happy Thanksgiving." He grinned, clapping me on the back.

The Netherworld looked normal, well as normal as it was possible for this place. It was morning in my world so it must be morning here too. The buildings that housed the legions were a hive of activity.

"Thanks Lemmy." I said, turning and jogging away.

"Anytime, kid. Don't get lost." He called.

I vaguely remembered the building. Pushing open the door, I noticed Tris in the lobby, talking to a small group of people.

"This is where you'll report for orientation," She smiled, and glanced round when she saw me. "Hello, Junko."

The people were two boys and a girl. One of the boys had blond hair and a stunning smile. He held up a hand and waved.

"This is Junko. Junko, these are three new recruits." Tris said, beaming.

I managed to wave back. The other boy looked interested for a split second then his eyes went back to his bracelet. The girl was watching me though with curiosity. I couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was. Her red and black hair was tied up neatly and she was dressed smart.

"Are you a human?" She asked.

"Um, yeah I am." I replied.

The boy looked up from his bracelet and shrugged. The girl was watching me though, eyes cutting straight through me.

"Are the rumours true?" She asked.

Rumours? I blinked dumbly and Tris motioned for the girl to quieten down. I realised she must mean about Chris and I. Not wanting to go into detail, I looked away. People might speculate but it wouldn't be fair to come out and say it.

"So, it is true then." The girl said.

I looked at her and she looked almost sad. Her eyes watered and she stomped away. Tris smiled and followed her. The boys trudged behind her. What the heck was that?

"Wow, that was awkward as hell." Keith said.

He'd appeared next to me, watching their retreating forms. Well, it was awkward, but who was she? Why was she so upset?

"I-i don't understand." I stuttered.

"Let's get some food and I'll tell you." Keith said, nodding for me to follow.

I didn't know what they ate here, but sure I'd go. We walked together and he told me that Chris was busy. He'd be free soon, but for now I'd have to wait. That was fine and dandy, but who was that girl.

The Netherworld's streets were cobbled and looked like something ripped from a Jack the Ripper documentary. We sat down in a small restaurant. This was different to the buildings where the legions were based. Across the way two monsters were sat, having a conversation in a language I didn't understand.

A dark cloud hovered near the door. I stared at it then back to Keith. He seemed unphased so I should be too. We ordered drinks, well he ordered for me. The menu was so cryptic that I couldn't order.

The waitress bought the drinks over and left us alone. There was so much I didn't understand. I sipped my drink to find it didn't taste that bad.

"So, that girl?" I asked.

"Do you know how legion leaders are selected?" Keith asked, throwing me off.

"Not a clue." I replied.

"It takes two things to be one; a rich family and the skills to wield the Grim Scythes."

Grim Scythe? That scythe that Chris used. I remembered now. Ok, so clearly the Netherworld's elite families were like Earth's elite families. So, Chris was rich. It didn't matter to me, really. I liked him before I knew and I still liked him. Money meant nothing.

"A rich family?" I asked.

"Yeah, that girl you met is from one of the richest," Keith replied. "And you are with the demon she's betrothed to."

My eyes widened. Chris had never mentioned an engagement. Was he going to leave me for her? I gulped and Keith sighed.

"He won't leave you. The engagement was called off long ago. She's promised to some other demon now, but there are feelings still."

"How come it was called off?" I asked.

"Not for me to say," Keith replied. "Ashley was not happy though."

Ashley? The girl demon. I remembered her expression, hurt and rejected. She looked like how I imagined I looked after finding out about Hunter and Collette.

"I could talk to her?" I suggested, wanting to patch things up.

"Nah, not gonna happen. She heard the rumours and now they're confirmed, yeah, she hates you." Keith replied, draining his drink.

Yeah, thanks for that. I was hated even though I did nothing. I didn't know this girl. I pushed my drink away and Keith smiled.

"Do you hate me?" I asked, and he rolled his eyes.

"Does it look like I hate you, sweetheart." He laughed, when I shoved his arm.

We left the cafe and walked towards the centre square of the legion buildings. A guy was walking towards us. His hair was brown, slightly shorter than Keith's.

"There you are." He said, and Keith pretended to hide behind me.

"I think he sees you." I sighed.

The guy approached and smiled, "Hi, I'm Greg."

"And no one cares." Keith grinned, pushing Greg away.

He waved at me and they disappeared together. I made my way towards the building, passing Lemmy and waving. He smiled and returned the gesture. He was accompanied by some new recruits. They all eyed me with keen interest.

When I got back to the foyer there were no new recruits hanging around. Thank goodness, I didn't want to be stared at again. The whole building seemed abuzz with new activity and I realised that it was Monday so this was a work day. Evidently, they didn't get Thanksgiving off.

"Well, look who it is." Andy had appeared, sauntering towards me.

He was dressed as strangely as ever, but seemed happy. I smiled and he stood next to me.

"Yeah, happy Thanksgiving." I said, and he smirked.

"That's the holiday where you guys eat turkey, right?" He asked.

"It's a little more complex than that." I replied, and he shrugged.

"The new recruits are here, lots of stuff happening. You can hang with me for a while." Andy stated, grabbing my hand and dragging me along.

He led me into a room towards the back of the building. It looked like a training room. It was a training room. He tried to get me to exercise, but it became apparent I was really unfit.

"Come on, you can do better." Andy grinned, when I struggled to do a push-up.

"I'm gonna die." I wheezed, and he laughed.

"Are all humans this bad?" He asked, sitting next to me.

I was content to lay there on the mat, breathing heavily. I supposed all humans would be considered unathletic since demons had superior strength and speed.

"I guess, compared to you," I mumbled. "I always hated sports."

"I just wanna help you defend yourself a little." Andy said, leaning down, blue eyes staring into mine.

It made more sense now. If I was attacked I would have no way to protect myself. Andy shifted and pulled something from his pocket. He handed it to me. A gun. Wow, how responsible.

"I-i don't think I should." I said, looking at him.

"The guns here contain spirit pressure. They can be loaded with silver bullets too," He said. "You should consider it."

I sat up and accepted the dangerous weapon. I stuffed it into my bag, not intending to actually use it. Andy smiled again, clearly happy with my decision.

"Why'd you give it to me?" I asked, and he sighed.

"Chris would be so upset if anything happened to you. I just want to cover all the bases so that we don't have another Sabrina incident." He spoke, then covered his mouth.

"Sabrina?" I asked, realising she was the one before me. She'd sold her soul.

"Yeah, I've spilled it now. She was the other human." He replied, running a hand through his fluffy hair.

"Were they in love?" I murmured, and he looked pained.

"Come on, seriously?" Andy said, then noticed my interested expression. "Yeah, they loved one another."

"Something happened to her." I stated, remembering that she was violated and ended the contract.

"Eric happened. He wanted her and it just-my god-it sucks." Andy groaned.

Eric had? My mind couldn't form the thought. He'd attacked her. Andy noticed my expression. My mouth must have been open in an O shape. He took a breath and reached over, touching a hand to my shoulder.

"Am I safe?" I asked, and Andy smiled slightly.

"Yeah, you are." He sounded so confident.

We left the training room and he walked me to Chris' office, leaving me by the door. He pressed a finger to his lips in a shushing motion. I realised he didn't want me to say anything. I wasn't going to say anything anyways.

I knocked on the door and Andy patted my shoulder, leaving me there. I waited a few minutes before entering. No one was here. Weird. Maybe it had been a rough day. I shut the door and walked towards his bedroom.

Knocking on the door, I heard swearing and then the door opened. Chris must have been expecting someone else. He looked surprised.

"Hey, I thought you were Tris." He said, letting me in.

"Why're you up here?" I asked, and he sat down on the bed.

He'd thrown his suit jacket over a chair and his shirt was slightly unbuttoned.

"I wanted to get away for a bit." He said, glancing at me.

"I-i can go if you want." I murmured, pointing at the door.

"Or you could stay and hide up here with me." He beckoned me over.

My face heated up and I shuffled nervously, before approaching, cautiously. A cold hand grasped mine and pulled me closer. He stood then, hugging me. I smiled as I breathed him in. I kind of hoped no one would find us.

 


	16. Night Sixteen

 

Someone knocked on the door. We both were frozen. I pulled back slightly and glanced upwards at Chris. His eyes were locked on the door.

"I know you're in there." Tris said.

He sighed and let go of me, throwing open the door and revealing Tris. She smiled widely. She didn't step into the room though. I guessed it was some kind of respect thing. I wasn't sure where to put myself so I sat on the edge of the bed, trailing my hand along the crimson bed throw.

"I need you to come down and be there." Tris was saying.

"I know. I do know the procedure. It's been 600 years that I've been doing this." Chris replied, sounding frustrated.

Tris' smile became sympathetic and she peeked round at me. Chris followed her gaze and managed a slight smile in my direction. I felt my face heat up, choosing to toy with my hair instead.

"Give me a minute." Chris said, closing the door.

I peeked from under my fringe as he did up the buttons on his shirt and put his jacket back on, turning towards me and sitting next to me. I shifted and looked at him, managing to meet his eyes.

"You're leaving me." I murmured.

"So melodramatic, aren't we? I won't be long." He replied, holding my hand in his, tracing his thumb across my knuckles.

I nodded and he smiled, pressing a kiss to my forehead. I think I held my breath, maybe hoping if I did then this moment would last forever. It didn't and he got up, leaving me alone.

There was so much I could do, like watch television. I had so many stations at my disposal. Or, and this was better, I could sneak around his room and be nosy. I woulnd't get too nosy. I just wanted to look and see what I would find out.

Starting from the cupboard, I hesitated. I wouldn't open the cupboard. That's where private things are kept. Instead, I walked over to the desk. There was a silver box on the top of the desk. It had a keyhole though so I doubt I'd be going through that. It felt sneaky doing this so I sat on the bed again.

Something caught my eye near the bedside table. I reached down and plucked it out. It was polaroid photo. It was a girl. Her hair was pink and she was seated in the window seat across the way. She was smiling prettily. Shifting off the bed, I seated myself in the same spot.

The view was pretty awesome. I could see across the Netherworld towards the buildings with their jagged spires and cobbled streets. Was this what she was looking at? I glanced at the picture again. A halo of light surrounded her and I realised this was taken at night. Was this Sabrina? It had to be.

A strange, prickling sensation overcame me. In one instance I was awed by her beauty and grace. In the other, I wanted to tear the picture to pieces. She wasn't looking at the view though. Her face was tilted, anlged towards whoever was taking the picture. I suddenly felt really uncomfortable.

Standing, I tucked the photo back where I'd found it. I sat on the bed. Was I jealous of a girl I'd never met? Of a girl that had had something so awful happen to her? I was a horrible person. I flopped down onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. My eyes closed.

The door suddenly slammed and I jumped up. Chris was back. Evidently something had gone bad, but I wasn't sure what. He obviously hadn't noticed I'd been asleep. He sat down next to me and finally smiled.

"Sorry, I scared you." He murmured.

"What'd that door ever do to you?" I asked, and he chuckled.

"Yeah, it's just the whole new recruits thing." He said, sitting back on the bed.

"You mean Ashley?" I asked, and then regretted it because his dark eyes observed me.

He wasn't telling me to mind my own business. I'm sure he wondered how I knew her name. I decided to look away and I felt him inch closer, grasping my chin. I was surprised to see him smiling.

"Who told you?" He asked.

"N-no one. Just sorta heard it through the ol' grapevine." I smiled, and he raised a brow.

"Of course you did. I'll figure out who it was, Junko." He said, that same playful smirk appearing.

"Ok fine, Keith told me." I blurted out.

"See that wasn't too difficult now, was it?" He chuckled.

I narrowed my eyes at him. There was a slight look of innocence on his face. Yeah right, he wasn't innocent. I forced myself to be serious.

"So, was it Ashley?" I persisted.

"If you must know, it was. She cornered me as I was leaving and we had a bit of a row. Just like old times." Chris replied.

They'd fought. It sounded like a regular thing. Maybe it was a good thing the engagement was called off.

"You two were meant to be engaged, right?" I asked.

"Meant to be. It never happened. Her father pushed for it. Mine did not," He replied, dark gaze going towards me again. "You know a lot. Maybe I should punish you for snooping."

Nerves ate away at me the moment those sinful eyes trailed down my body. Sure, I was wearing a dress today, of all the days. I clenched my fingers in the hem of my dress. Play it all off as a joke, Junko.

"You're so funny." I fake laughed.

"I wasn't aware I was joking." He said, eyes boring into mine.

I probably shouldn't reveal the other thing I knew. The thing Andy had told me. I glanced at my boyfriend. He must have noticed my expression change. 850 years being alive obviously made you somewhat wiser and able to read body language.

"Why aren't you smiling anymore?" Chris asked.

Quick think of something. Ask something else. There is so much you don't know so just blurt the first thing you can think of out.

"What's your true form? Keith said something about forms. What's yours?" I blurted. Nailed it.

"My true form?" Chris repeated, seeming to think. "Think Lovecraftian, but worse."

"C-can I see?" I asked, and he smirked.

"It might drive you a little insane. That could be a problem if we were to continue a relationship." He replied, leaning his chin on his hand.

He blinked and his pupils blackened. I guessed that would be all I'd be seeing. He tilted his head to the side, watching me.

"I'm not afraid." I said, and it was true.

I hadn't been afraid that day I'd seen him with the black eyes and that insane scythe. I wasn't afraid of him today. He'd never hurt me. I managed a smile and he blinked again, eyes returning to normal.

"I'm going to change." He stated, standing and removing his jacket.

Nope, not in front of me. He unbottoned his shirt and I felt the heat flood to my face. Out of pure embarrassment, I covered my eyes with my hands. I could just about hear the clink of a belt through the roaring of my ears.

I could hear him pulling on some jeans and I waited. He must be finished now. I lowered my hands to find he was right in front of me, dark eyes staring into my own. Out of curiosity, my gaze went downwards, taking in his broad shoulders covered in tattoos. His stomach was flat and my gaze trailed downwards. He was wearing jeans, but the belt was undone.

"Why?" I squeaked.

"Seeing your reactions is always funny." Chris replied.

His lips met mine, kissing me gently. I responded, sighing into the kiss. It was amazing. Someone knocked on the door. Chris pulled back, glaring at the door. He moved quickly, grabbing a t-shirt and pulling it on.

I barely had time to react when he grabbed my hand, pulling me close. What the heck did he have planned? He pressed a panel on his bracelet and we were transported. When I opened my eyes, we were outside my room.

"I want to see where you live." He stated.

Fair enough. I turned and unlocked the door. My room was nothing fancy. I had decorated it light pink and strewn plushies everywhere. I certainly felt like a grown-up. Chris sat on my bed, picking up my Grumpy Cat plush, squidging its face.

He grinned and threw it at me, laughing when I batted it away. I wondered how long we'd stay here. I thought he was just curious.

"We should go back." I said.

"I'd rather stay here." He replied.

Alison would freak if she found out. I turned round and rested my head against the door. Alison wasn't overly strict, but guys weren't allowed to be here. It was girls only. Sure, other girls snuck their boyfriends in, but I was so afraid of getting in trouble.

A large hand enveloped mine and I turned to face him. How'd he move so quick? His lips met mine again, quickly deepening the kiss. I responded, arms coiling round his shoulders. Kissing whilst standing was quite difficult. I think it was the height difference. We pulled apart.

"You're too tall." I whined.

"Nope, you're just a midget." Chris replied.

Maybe staying here wouldn't be so bad. My bed was only queen sized so I was certain we'd both fit. I glanced at the clock. It was around three. We could order food and watch movies. That sounded fun.

We did end up watching films. This was awesome. The sky darkened until there was only the glow from my tv set. Chris' bracelet started glowing and he rolled his eyes. Watching him bring up the hologram, I noticed it said something about a mission.

"What kind of mission?" I asked.

"Haunted road. Boring." He sighed.

"Doesn't sound boring." I said, tilting my head back to look at him.

"Then you can go with Andy and Ashley." Chris responded.

Had I just volunteered myself for a mission? Yeah, I had. I didn't care. It would give me something to do during my week off. I relaxed again and closed my eyes. Sleep dragged me in.

 


	17. Night Seventeen

 

All good things must come to an end, or so people say. The mission of the haunted highway started the following afternoon. I ended up along a desolate stretch of road. It had been too far away to get a taxi to so I'd used my bracelet.

Trees lined the road and I realised I was surrounded on all sides by a forest. There was a bench though and that was where I'd taken up residence. The snow hadn't hit this part of the country yet, but it was still cold. The trees had lost all their leaves and were like wooden skeletons, limbs gnarled and contorted.

"Junko." Someone called my name and I looked round.

Andy was approaching me. He wasn't alone though. Two other people were with him. I had assumed that Ashley would be with him, but this was very peculiar. He stopped when he got to the bench.

"You're here early." Andy stated.

"Yeah, I didn't want to be late and miss you." I replied.

This place was eerie. I hadn't seen any cars yet. It was like it was abandonned; a stretch of road forgotten in time. I glanced at the guy next to Andy. He was short, coming up to just above Andy's shoulders, but he was taller than me.

"Junko, this Ricky. He's a part of Lemmy's team. They decided to split this mission between legions." Andy said, motioning to Ricky.

"And I'm Devin," The other guy said, grabbing my hand. "And I know all about you."

He looked familiar and then it clicked. He was the guy with Tris from the other day. He'd been more interested in his bracelet at the time, but now it seemed like he was a lot more social.

"Y-yeah, you were with Tris the other day." I said, and he smiled.

"Yup. Like I said, I know all about you." He grinned.

This must have been some sort of training exercise. Devin let go of my hand and turned to Andy, who looked beyond exhausted.

A rumbling sound made us all look round. A truck was driving down the road. It was rustic and sounded like it would die at any minute. It stopped just short of us and the door opened. A man clambered out. He was wearing a trucker's hat and I could smell the alcohol on him from here.

"You kids all right?" He asked.

"Yeah, we're just interested in the events round here." Andy smiled.

The guy looked from Andy, to Ricky, then to Devin and finally to me. He actually smiled, like Christmas had come at once.

"You mean the aliens." He gasped.

"Aliens?" Ricky asked.

"Yeah, kid. I've seen them." The guy said, proudly.

I glanced at Andy and he was frowning. From the mission briefing this road had seen a lot of weird activity. There'd been sightings of a strange creature, ghost cars, a woman hitchiker, but no aliens. I guessed it wouldn't be so unusual.

"Where'd you see these aliens?" Andy asked.

The guy didn't seem to understand he was being interrogated so he allowed us onto his truck. We were either driving towards a murderers house or the guy was harmless.

His house was a shack through some trees and it looked like it would fall down at any second, if the wind blew in the right direction. The guy killed the engine and motioned for us to follow. The trees staretd to give way and we were standing on the edge of a cliff.

The drop was steep. Above us was the grey morning sky and below a sheer drop. The guy stood off to the side, watching the skies, like he thought the aliens might just nip down for afternoon tea.

"Up there." He stated.

"What did the craft look like?" Ricky asked.

He'd grown bored and had sat down on a tree stump. I continued to stare at the sky. The clouds were grey, everything was grey, like that song except that was blue.

"Craft?" The guy scoffed. "Nah, I've seen an actual alien."

Ricky sighed loudly, "Fine, what did the 'aliens' look like?"

"Alien. There was only one," The guy snapped. "She was beautiful."

I exchanged a look with Devin to find he was grinning. The guy started going into detail about this alien and how she and him had had made love multiple times. I covered my ears and wrinkled my nose. Devin had covered his mouth, trying not to laugh.

"Can I just interrupt?" Andy asked, and the guy paused. "Have you ever seen any ghost cars?"

"Ain't no ghost cars. Just the alien." The guy fired back.

"Yeah, the alien, that you had sex with." Ricky snorted out a laugh.

"See this guy gets it." The guy chuckled, leaning over to nudge Ricky.

"Please, please don't touch me." Ricky snapped, leaning away.

We made our way back to the main highway and Andy sighed. He split us into teams, sending me off with Ricky. We walked down the road, saying nothing. This was awkward.

"So, how's your day going?" I asked, trying to bridge the silence.

"It could be better, don't ya think." Ricky replied, smiling.

We'd walked as far an old sign post when he stopped, looking around. The road stretched onwards and I copied Ricky. My eyes scanned the road until I saw someone. I squinted into the distance, trying to get a good look at the figure.

Ricky hadn't seen them so I stepped forward. Maybe they were lost and needed help. As I drew closer I noticed something and my eyes widened.

"Mom." I whispered.

It looked like her. From behind, I recognised her jacket. The one she'd been wearing the night of the accident. I started walking towards her.

"Mom?" I shouted now, attracting Ricky's attention.

He turned and faced the direction I was looking. He seemed to be trying to see my Mom. His eyes widened, but before he could say anything I'd taken off, running after my Mom. This was it. I'd get to see her again. I had been sort of hoping that she'd show up during this whole ghost hunting thing.

"Junko, stop." Ricky called.

I had already sped by, giving chase. My Mom was walking away from me. Where was she going? How come she wasn't turning to look at me? She vanished into the trees and I ran after her. I could see her as she moved through the under growth.

"Mom, please come back. I miss you." I shouted, but she didn't turn.

The trees thinned until we were at the cliff. I saw her on the edge and ran towards her. I had gotten to the edge and my feet hit empty air. The scream tore from my lips as wind rushed by me. I landed on something with a crunch. Sitting up, I found I was on a ledge. Where had Mom gone?

"Mom." I screamed.

Nothing happened. I blinked and sat up. My arm throbbed. I'd landed on it. My fingers weren't moving. They felt numb. The feeling came back to my body and pain surged through me. It wasn't just physical pain. I was reliving the moment when I realised I'd never see my parents again.

"Junko?"

I looked up to see Andy. He leapt down, landing gracefully on the ledge. He scooped me up and I burst into tears, like a child. He jumped again, flying into the air and landing back on the cliff. I could see Ricky and I looked away.

"I'm sorry." I whispered.

Ricky walked over and smiled at me, reassuringly. His eyes were still panicked. I'd done that to him.

"It's ok. Are you all right?" He asked.

No, I wasn't all right. I sniffed and broke down again. Ricky reeled back and looked at Andy, who cradled me closer. Someone broke through the trees and Devin appeared, looking flustered.

"Chris and Lemmy are on their way." He gasped.

"Fan-fucking-tastic." Andy sighed.

"Andy, I'm sorry. It's all my fault." I sobbed, and he glanced at me.

"It's not your fault at all. You saw someone that looked like your mom. I'm sorry it wasn't." He said, sadly.

Andy carried me back through the trees. I saw Lemmy first then I saw Chris. He moved quickly, heading straight for Andy and I.

"You guys weren't supposed to damage the poor kid." Lemmy chuckled.

"She saw something." Ricky replied.

"What did you see, sweetheart?" Lemmy asked.

Andy had handed me to Chris. He looked at me too.

"M-my Mom. She was walking away from me." I murmured.

Lemmy frowned and nodded. He looked regretful. He probably thought I was an idiot. He turned and started chatting to Ricky.

"Are you ok?" Chris asked.

I looked at him and nodded. He seemed to realise I wasn't though. I buried my face into his jacket, breathing in his scent. The hand he had wrapped round my shoulder gently toyed with my hair.

"I'm sorry." I whispered.

"Don't worry about it. Let's go get your arm looked at." He replied.

"It wasn't Andy's fault. I ran off." I sobbed.

Tris greeted us when we got back to The Netherworld. She smiled at me, much like how she'd done when I got scratched and when I'd tripped that time. The first time had been my first ever time here and I never dreamed the demon holding me would actually like me. He'd seemed to cold and closed off at first.

Tris' cold hands felt my arm. I winced and she sighed, pulling back.

"Broken arm." She said.

"I kinda landed on it." I replied.

The hosptial wing looked the same as ever. Tris appeared again, holding a bottle of something. She sat in front of me. She'd put my arm in a sling. Chris had gone somewhere, but promised he'd be back.

"You'll need to drink this." She stated, pouring some of the white liquid into a glass.

It was clear, but thick, kind of like milk. Tris handed me the glass and I took a sip, gagging at the taste. It was metallic and sour. It burnt my tongue and my throat as it slid down. I drained the glass, coughing when I was done.

"There we go," Tris smiled. "That potion will fix your bone. Takes about an hour to work."

I sniffed and she stood, sighing softly. Her gaze was sad and sympathetic. Her hand gently touched my good shoulder.

"You should never follow the dead. Nothing good comes from it." She murmured, then left.

The door opened again and Chris appeared. He walked over, sitting in front of me. He didn't seem angry so I guessed Andy was still safe.

"I'm sorry." I whispered.

"Stop apologising. It doesn't matter." He replied.

I wasn't going to stay in the hospital wing all night, but standing proved difficult. Evidently, I'd bruised various other body parts so Chris had to carry me. It gave me another chance to be close to him though so I wasn't complaining.

When we got to his room, he set me down at the top of the bed near the pillows. It was still fairly early in the day so he'd have to go back to work. I didn't mind. It'd give me a chance to sleep and I did, fairly quickly.

 

 


	18. Night Eighteen

 

My mouth felt like the Sahara desert when I finally woke up. How long had I slept? My eyes flicked towards the window. The purple, Netherworldlian sky was darkening to a mauve. The moon was starting to peek through the clouds.

Sitting up, I felt dizzy. I could move my arm though. In fact, apart from the sickness, I felt good as new. Sickness? I gagged and stood on very shaky feet. There must be a bathroom here. Demons had to go toilet. Everyone goes toilet.

There was a door in the corner. Flinging it open did in fact reveal a bathroom. My throat burned as I heaved into the toilet. I coughed again and sat back. I hadn't really been sick, but I still felt a little better.

I sat in the window seat for lack of a better place to sit. Below me, the streets spanned as far as the eye could see. Across the way, something exploded and I jumped back. A monster appeared and started yelling. I wondered if that monster was the janitor or something.

I thought about the mission today. I needed to go and find out whether it was my Mom that I saw. I had to know. A part of me knew it might not be her, but I had to know. I'm sure I could go back tomorrow and find out.

The door opened and arms wrapped around me. I smiled and leaned back. I was so happy Chris was back. I turned round and hugged him. In fact, I didn't want to let go.

"So, you're going to stay glued to me forever." He chuckled.

"Yep, never letting go, ever." I said, hugging him tighter.

"That'll be fun when I have to change clothes." He replied, voice close to my ear.

The hairs on the nape of my neck stood and I felt my skin prickle slightly. I moved backwards and giggled, nervously. I'm sure Chris wouldn't mind me going back to the deserted road as long as I was with Andy.

"So, the road?" I asked. "Are we going back tomorrow?"

"Andy and Ricky are." Chris replied, sitting on the bed.

"Well, I wanna go too." I stated, and his eyes narrowed.

"You fell off a cliffside, broke your arm and could have been badly hurt. What makes you think I'm going to let you go back?" Chris snapped.

Uh oh. I took a shaky breath. I'd never heard him take that tone with me. Well, I had when we first met, when he'd snapped at Tris to send me home. I knew he wouldn't hurt me, but I also knew he wasn't going to back down easy.

"The fact that I'm an adult and can make my own decisions." I said, standing. Part of me hoped that I looked mature and decisive.

"An adult that wants to follow an illusion off a cliff. That's a new one." He said.

"It could have been my Mom, but I won't know unless I go back." I could hear myself becoming frantic.

"I highly doubt your mother would intentionally harm you."

My breathing was heavy. Was he arguing with me? Were we in a fight? Why couldn't he understand why I wanted to do this. I shuffled nervously.

"I won't get hurt again." I said, softly.

"It's not your decision to make." Chris replied, and I glared at him.

"I'm not your employee, you know." I snapped.

"I know that, but right now you're behaving like a child." He fired back.

Some people get angry and scream. My anger tends to dissipate and I can never find the words. Instead, my fight or flight response kicked in and I shifted on the spot, eyes going to the door. I was a child. Making my decision, I moved towards the door. My hand landed on the handle.

Chris' hand enveloped mine and I turned to glare at him. My gaze faltered though and I looked down.

"I don't want to fight so let me leave." I whispered.

"You think this is a fight?" He chuckled then, surprising me.

"Well, what would you call it?" I sniffled.

"A minor disagreement." He said, shrugging.

We weren't screaming at each other, which was a good thing.

"You called me a child." I said, rubbing my eyes. Nope, not crying.

Call it insecurity, but I didn't like that he'd called me a child. I'd read enough websites about relationships to know that we were meant to be equals. I'm not sure what prompted me to start researching how to be in a relationship. Maybe it was the need to prove that I was an adult. Time to change tack.

"We're meant to be equals. It's a good basis for a relationship." I snapped.

"We are equals," He replied, smirking at me. "Whatever magazine or webpage you got that from probably also advised that we communicate and not run away, like you're trying to to do."

Freakin' jerk. I got the distinct feeling I wouldn't be able to escape even if I tried. I bit down on my lower lip and thought for a moment.

"You can't keep me here. I'm not your prisoner." I said, and was surprised when he raised a brow at me.

"I don't view you as a prisoner, but you are mine." He replied, pupils dilating slightly.

"N-nope, don't even think-"

My protest was cut short when he leaned down, pressing his lips to mine. My mouth had been slightly parted at the time and his tongue pushed past my lips. I didn't want to respond at first, but I gave in.

I kissed back, nervously. My hands were holding onto Chris' jacket, knuckles going numb from how tight my grip was. I was distinctly aware that we were pressed against a door, but I was too far gone to care. His hands gripped my legs, lifting me easily, pressing me into the door.

I was so involved in kissing him that I didn't realise we were on the bed until my back hit the bed throw. My legs were wrapped round Chris' waist and I untangled myself a little. The kiss stopped, but only so his lips could travel down my jaw and to my neck. I gasped when he bit down, then soothed the skin with a gentle kiss.

My eyes met his. Brown met pure black and I gulped. The way he looked at me made my knees tremble. How far would this go? His eyes left mine and resumed their journey down my neck till he got to the collar of my t-shirt. I felt a cold hand graze the hem of my t-shirt and caress my stomach. My body shrank away and Chris pulled back, pupils slowly returning to normal.

I was breathing heavily and trembling a little. In a way, it had been scary, but also exciting. I could feel the blush rise on my cheeks. He leaned down again so we were facing each other.

"I still want to go back." I stated, and he sighed.

"I know, but it's a bad idea to follow the dead." He replied, tracing a hand across my stomach.

My eyes went to his hand and I analysed the tattoos for something to do. My gaze went to his neck then and looked at the tattoo there. I smiled and turned, lifting my hand to touch the lines.

"This is so cool. Did it hurt?" I asked.

"No, it felt like unicorns were licking my skin." He replied, sarcasm. He was good at sarcasm.

"Demons feel pain?" I was curious now.

"Demons do feel pain. Death might not affect us, but pain does." Chris said.

His voice sounded clipped, like he was remembering something. I thought about the photo and shuffled nervously. Was I sweating? I should say something. I wanted to know everything about him.

"Have you ever felt pain?" I asked. It seemed the best way to approach the subject.

"I assume you're referring to Sabrina?" He said.

My eyes widened and I looked at him. He knew I'd found the photo. How else could I explain the look in his eyes. Was he mad? He didn't seem mad.

"I'm sorry about what happened to her." I murmured.

"Don't be sorry. It was partially my fault it happened." He replied.

"No, it wasn't. You didn't know what Eric would do." I said.

I thought about Sabrina. I felt sorry for her. How safe was I? She had clearly thought she'd been safe, but Eric had managed to get to her and hurt her.

"You are safe," Chris said, interrupting my thoughts.

I smiled and I actually believed him. I was still a little scared, but I trusted Chris. My eyes closed and I shuffled closer.

 

*******************

 

"It seems to like humans." Andy stated, staring down the road.

This was interesting. Returning to the road. Andy had bleeped Chris mid-morning. They weren't able to locate this entity. It was decided that whatever it was, was attracted to humans. Would it appear again?

My eyes trailed down the road. I saw it then. The figure of a woman walking away from us. From the back she did look like my Mom, but I realised if she turned around then she wouldn't be my mother.

Whether the entity realised this was unclear, but it stopped and turned. I yelped and leapt back. It had no face.

"Shapeshifter." Andy called.

"How strong?" Chris asked. He pulled me closer.

"Low level. Scared." Andy replied.

The shapeshifter changed forms and lunged. It was mish-mash of human and animal parts. Andy removed a gun from the holster at his waist and fired a couple of shots. The shapeshifter flew skywards and dodged.

For something low level, it sure seemed strong. Chris sighed and stood. We'd been sitting on the bench. The Grim-Scythe seemed a part of him. The shapeshifter didn't get any closer as it was sliced in two. The creature disippated and we were left on an empty road.

"That was so bad-ass." Devin smiled.

He'd come along too. I assumed as part of training. Chris lowered the scythe and it disappeared as though becoming a part of him again.

"Maybe, if you paid attention to lessons then you could do that." Andy said, nudging Devin.

"Yeah, totally, then I could marry Junko." Devin grinned.

Andy caught the look Chris sent them.

"Or if you valued your existence you could keep your mouth shut." Andy stated.

I laughed at this. I did wonder if I'd ever see my Mom again.

 

**************

 

"Have you and Junko made up yet?" Hunter asked.

"No, not yet. Why?" Collette responded.

Hunter merely shrugged and stared across the quad towards the college. He toyed with the cross necklace round his neck.

"Maybe, you guys should. It would be great to go on a double-date, wouldn't it?" He grinned, and Collette smiled too.

"Y-yeah, you're right. We shouldn't waste years of friendship." She said.

Liam watched them, uneasily.

 


	19. Night Nineteen

 

"Hey, how are you?" Collette had seated herself next to me.

I had my mouth open, ready to eat a piece of ravioli. It slopped off the fork and onto the plate with a wet splat. I lowered the fork and stared at her like she'd grown an extra head. What could she possibly want?

"Good, I guess."I replied, shifting nervously.

"Listen, I want to apologise," She sighed. "I'm sorry for everything."

This was a startling new development. Collette and I had only ever fallen out a couple of times before, never this bad, but still. This was the first time she'd apologised to me. I wasn't sure how to take it.

"It's fine." I replied, shrugging.

"I feel really bad, Junko," She pleaded. "Let's be friends again. I miss you."

Where was Hunter? Had he set this up? No, why would he? He'd warned me to stay away from Collette. He'd called me a stalker. Did Collette know that? Maybe he felt bad too and he wanted Collette to bridge the gap so he could apologise too.

"Ok, we can be friends again." I said.

She smiled and leaned over, hugging me. I didn't really hug back. This felt awkward and weird. I was mixed between disliking her and wanting so badly to be friends again. She pulled back and smiled brightly.

"So, I was thinking we could go on a double-date." She beamed.

I frowned at this. Hunter had met Chris and the meeting was hardly amicable. Did she not know about that?

"How did you know about Chris?" I asked.

"Hunter told me he saw you guys at Bewitched together, duh." She laughed.

Ah, so Hunter had glossed over the details. Collette probably assumed Hunter had courteously waved at Chris and I, then left us alone. Should I tell her? She looked so happy. Maybe this double-date thing could work. It could be a line in the sand and we could all get along.

"Sounds like fun." I replied.

"Super, I'll let Hunter know. We can set a date." She grinned, standing and dashing off.

That was totally weird.

"I wouldn't." Liam said.

He and Cole were across the way, having seen the whole thing. Liam seemed to be falling out with Collette and Hunter more and more. He had lunch with them a couple of times, but grew fed up with them ignoring him.

I wanted to forgive Collette and move on so I decided to give her a chance. Now I had to think of a way to persuade Chris.

 

***********************

 

"Can you do me a huge favour, Junko?" Tris had collared me the moment I set foot in the foyer.

"Sure, what is it?" I asked. Why'd I agree to this garbage.

"I need you to take this parchment over to the third house down." She replied, guiding me to the door. She pointed at the third building.

I shrugged and accepted my quest. The second building belonged to Lemmy. He wasn't out front today. Normally he'd be sat on the porch, sipping a glass of whiskey and chuckling at the new recruits when they made a mistake.

The third building was slightly obscured by a weird looking tree. It shuffled when I got close and hissed at me. I tapped on the door and entered when no one answered. The foyer was darker and the ceiling was covered in vines.

"How will I know if he really loves me." Someone was singing.

I craned my neck and finally noticed a girl perched in the window seat, huge book open in her lap. Her eyes were round and doe-like. Her brown hair was slightly tied back with a long stripe of it hanging down her shoulder. Should I hand the parchment to her? She kept singing softly.

"Excuse me." I said.

She jumped and the book clattered to the floor. She fumbled to scoop it up and set it in the window seat, before looking at me.

"Sorry, I didn't hear you." She smiled, turning off the music.

It was resonating from a box. Its lid was open and there seemed to be a crystal inside, glowing softly. She shut the lid and stepped closer. In the dim light I could see that she was only about my height. Her features were sweet and delicate.

"Welcome to the third legion house led by Eric." She said, stumbling a little.

This was where Eric was based. I had expected something worse, more sinister. I was definitely expecting someone more frightening. Instead I was met with a small girl, who looked about as scary as me.

"T-thanks. These are for Eric, I think." I handed over the parchment and she accepted.

She deposited the parchment on the table nearby. There were a lot of parchments on there. Organisation clearly wasn't Eric's strong suit.

"Are you human?" She asked.

"Yeah, I am." I replied.

Her eyes lit up and she stepped closer, "I'm half human."

Half human? My eyes widened. I hadn't expected that. She seemed to realise that she didn't know me. We were strangers.

"I'm Ariana." She held out a delicate hand.

I accepted and smiled, "Junko."

She let go and glanced around the creepy foyer. This place was awful. Why was someone like this hanging around here?

"Let's go sit outside." She said, and I followed. Anything to leave this building.

We sat on the grass, away from the creepy tree and even creepier building. In the light she looked almost angellic. I noticed other demons giving her a wide berth though.

"How come you're in Eric's legion?" I asked.

"He likes me because he doesn't like me." She replied.

What a strange reason. Her status as a halfling made her unique. Eric must enjoy picking on her. My hatred for him grew again. I wanted to hit him with a fridge. Her doe eyes glanced around the area, looking for something.

"How are you half human/half demon?" I asked.

"I'm actually a human/angel hybrid." She said, blushing slightly.

She shuffled awkwardly. I guessed because demons existed then angels must as well. No wonder she looked like she didn't fit in.

"My mom was a human. My dad was an angel," She sighed, sitting slightly closer. "After mom died, dad wanted me to come here."

"So, you're immortal too?" I quizzed her.

"No, I'll just age really slowly." She smiled.

I actually liked her. She reminded me of Collette, but without the nasty streak. Again, her eyes canvassed the area and I followed her gaze.

"What're you looking for?" I asked, and she turned her head so quickly her hair spun too.

"You'll laugh." She murmured.

Her cheeks were bright red. Did she have a boyfriend she was waiting on? She sat next to me, eyes roving towards the fourth house across the way.

"That's the legion house run by Debbie," She stated, and I listened. "Everyday I sit here and wait. I'm a little early today."

She nudged me and the door opened and a guy with brown hair walked out. He was holding the door. A cap was on his head and he had an easy smile. I looked at her and nodded. She frowned and shook her head, grabbing my chin, making me look again.

Another guy followed him out the door. His hair was much longer and darker. He was wearing a black hoodie and jeans. His face was pierced, far more than Chris'. This guy's nose was pierced and his lobes were stretched so that they hung down. I followed his movements as he walked with the other guy. Ariana did too. Her eyes never left him.

He vanished with his friend and she sighed, dropping her gaze then looking at me. The blush never left her face.

"That was Mike." She said, toying with her pink hoodie.

"You like him." I grinned.

"Yes, I always have. We were new recruits at the same time and he was the only one that didn't bully me." She murmured.

"People bully you." I couldn't believe it. She was so pretty.

"Yeah, no one likes the girl that's half angel." She whispered, sounding heart broken.

"I-i know how you feel," I blurted out and she looked at me. "Don't give up. Talk to him. He might like you too."

She looked disheartened, "Or he might feel sorry for me."

"He doesn't know you. Get him alone and strike up a conversation. I did that with someone and it worked." I decided to not share everything.

Her eyes widened and she seemed to be thinking. Her brown eyes scanned the grass in a flurry of emotions.

"What if he laughs at me?" She mumbled.

"What if he doesn't?" I countered.

Her pretty smile returned and was replaced by a look of determination, "Tomorrow, I'll speak to him."

I let her go then. Another girl had appeared at the door to the third house and was glaring at Ariana. She seemed to realise it was time to leave. She hugged me then departed. I watched her retreating form and I felt bad for her. Now I had to face up to own problems.

 

********************

 

Listen, let's go on a weird double-date with the girl that ruined my life and the guy you really hate. Yep, that sounded about right. Let's do this. I had made it to Chris' office and tapped on the door. When I entered he was sat on the couch, reading a book. He looked up when I walked in and smiled.

I loved that smile. It was everything. It made life so good. I loved the way his lips curled upwards, how his teeth were so white and how I was the only person that could achieve this. It would be a shame to ruin that. 3......2......1.

"Hey, how was your day?" I asked, sitting down.

"Better now." He said, leaning closer.

Too close, fam. Let's remember what happened the other night. Images flashed in my mind and suddenly the room felt like it was spinning.

"Are you busy this weekend?" I asked.

"Not really, why?" Chris replied, brow arching.

"Well, we've sorta been invited out." I smiled.

"Invited out? Like, a couples thing?" He said, frowning.

"Yup, just me, you," I needed to do this quick. "AndColletteandHunter."

He pulled back and his eyes narrowed. I smiled, but he didn't smile back.

"You made friends with them?" He asked.

"Collette apologised." I replied.

He was older than me. Would he really go along with this?

"Do I have to speak to him?" Chris asked.

"Nope, you can totally ignore him." I said, and he shrugged.

"Fine, where and when."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously. I mean, I'd rather be eaten by hell hounds."

I glowered at him. I was starting to grasp his personality. Underneath the smart suits was sarcasm and a tendency to be quite scathing. This was gonna be bad.

"You need to be nice." I shot back.

"Aren't I always nice, Junko." He murmured, shifting closer.

We were inches apart and he smirked. I liked that too. I shrugged and he leaned down, closing the distance. His lips were ghosting across mine and I waited with nervous anticipation.

"Well." I snapped.

"You want to kiss?" He murmured again. I nodded.

"Y-yes."

"Should of thought of that before you tricked me into a date with those two mouth breathers." He grinned, pulling back.

Jerkwad!

 


	20. Night Twenty

 

No missions for the last few days. Either it was a quiet period or I wasn't told if there were missions. It suited me just fine, really. I'd been able to build a tentative bridge with Collette and that was ok.

We'd arranged the weird double date for Saturday. Chris was still going along with this and I got the sense he was only doing so for my benefit. I realised he, maybe, didn't like humans that much. I was an exception so that made me feel very special.

Saturday arrived and I found myself in my room with Victoria. She had seemed so subdued. I guessed she thought she'd be all alone again and I felt really sorry for her. I wanted to reassure her, but wasn't sure how to go about it.

"You and Chris could just go on a date together. Forget all this crap." She said, digging around in my closet.

"I guess we could. I just want to make everything all right." I replied, and she nodded.

I liked Victoria. She understood things and that was awesome. She pulled out one of my jumpers. It was the one with cartoon cats on and she stifled a giggle. She held it up and I shrugged.

"I bet he'd love this." She laughed then.

"Hey, shut up. I never said I was good at fashion." I fought back, weakly.

I settled on the jumper with thick tights and boots. Victoria vanished and reappered with a bag. I stared at it and she grinned.

"Let me do your make-up." She said. It wasn't a question. She might have held me down.

"I don't really wear make-up." I said.

It was true. I did, however, spend a lot of time watching videos on YouTube of how to contour and do perfect eyeliner wings. I had tried once and ended up looking like a clown. I agreed and Victoria sat in front of me.

It was weird having someone do your make-up. I didn't know what she was doing. The whole process took about twenty minutes and she finally pulled back and smiled.

"Done. Have a look." She said.

I got up and walked to the small mirror on my desk. I blinked a couple of times. The make-up was understated and natural. I smiled a little and Victoria appeared next to me, looking proud. Her phone beeped and she removed it from her jean pocket.

"It's twelve. You need to head off." She said, and then sighed.

Victoria walked me to the stairs of the dorm. She seemed to like Chris. When she opened the doors he was seated on the brick railing.

"Someone decided to change things up." She grinned.

It was true. Chris had shaved the sides of his head. There were several little spikes jutting out from the top of his head on either side. I walked in front of him and he smiled.

"Wow, you look different." I blurted.

"Good different." He replied, smiling.

He was dressed casual again in a jacket also covered in spikes. Victoria was looking on in wide eyed fascination.

"You two look like complete opposites." She said.

"Opposites always attract." Chris replied. He actually smiled at Victoria.

I blushed at that and my face flushed even more when he gripped my chin, angling my face to see my make-up. I couldn't really tell what he was thinking. I managed a shy smile.

"Cute." He chuckled.

Victoria gave me a hug just before we left and wished us luck. I got the sense we'd need it. Chris took my hand and we walked together. It hadn't snowed in a few days and the sky was a bleak grey colour.

"Excited?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, can't you tell." Chris replied.

We got to Bewitched early and sat in one of the booths. I was sorely tempted to reach up and touch one of those spikes on his head. My arm extended and I pressed one.

"Having fun?" Chris asked, lips tilting into a smirk.

"I-i was just curious." I replied, snapping my hand back.

"Be as curious as you want." He said, eyes locking onto mine.

Our little moment was interrupted by the dinging of the bell above the door. Collette and Hunter had arrived. Collette looked eager whereas Hunter looked beyond bored. His default look. Collette rushed over and smiled. I gave her a hug which she returned. She let go and looked at Chris.

"You must be Chris." She gushed.

"Yeah, nice to meet you." Chris replied, surprising me by being polite.

He didn't reach out and accept Collette's hand shake though. She seemed to realise, but sat down. Hunter sat next to her. He didn't look at me or Chris. This must have been severely embarrassing for Hunter.

The waitress appeared and took our orders. It was silent and I sat there in tense apprehension. A cold hand grasped mine and I glanced at Chris. His eyes were observing Collette and Hunter. He noticed me looking at him and smiled.

"So, how did you two meet?" Collette asked.

I hadn't thought about this. What should I say?I couldn't say we met in the Netherworld. Collette would be weirded out.

"Through mutual friends." Chris replied.

Collette looked confused. I could see the wheels whirring in her mind, but she said nothing. The food arrived and the meeting lapsed into silence again. Collette did most of the talking though. Hunter was finally watching us, well, watching Chris.

"Watch out, sweetie." Collette smiled.

Hunter stood and let her pass to go toilet. When she left, his eyes narrowed somewhat. I wondered what insults he'd throw. Chris was leaning on his hands, observing Hunter. The same smirk on his face seemed to be annoying Hunter.

"I think my father would love to meet you, Chris." Hunter said.

"I have no interest in meeting your family." Chris replied.

Uh oh. I glanced at Hunter and he scowled. His features darkening. That same face I'd found handsome was now ugly to me.

"I only mean since you're a demon, right?" Hunter grinned. "Crocell, is it?"

Chris' eyes flashed black for an instant and Hunter chuckled. He then looked to me, grin growing on his face.

"So, you know who I am. Congratulations," Chris smirked, raising a brow. "And what do you intend to do with this information. Check yourself into a secure unit, perhaps."

Hunter's face became a mask of fury. Instead, he looked to me for the first time since this meet up.

"Junko, a demon's name can give your power over them," He sneered, then looked at Chris. "This monster would never tell you because it wants power over you."

"I think you should go, Hunter." I surprised myself by saying.

Hunter shook his head and got up, sliding out of the booth. Collette had finished in the bathroom and was approaching. Hunter streaked past her, grabbing her hand. He paid then dragged her out the door.

"Well, that was entertaining." Chris said, and I looked at him.

"Is-was that your real name?" I asked.

"Yeah, it is. All demons have one." He said, shrugging.

I managed a smile then. I'd seen a few movies about demons. All of them involved some hellish creature possessing an innocent girl. The brave preists would discover the demon's name and cast it out. How had Hunter figured it all out though?

"How did Hunter know?" I asked.

"There are families all over America that practice exorcisms," Chris replied. "If Hunter's last name is either Jacoby or Samuels then he's part of one of the biggest families."

"I think it's Samuels." I said, and Chris glanced at me.

"Derek Samuels is a fanatic." Chris smirked.

I'd never heard Hunter speak of his family. All I knew was that we had more enemies now. More to worry about. Would Hunter's father come here and hurt Chris? A cold trail of fear danced down my spine.

"Will they come here? You know, to hurt you?" I squeaked.

"I'm 840 years old. They've tried before. They'll try again," Chris said, shrugging. "I'm bored here."

We paid and left. I tried to ignore the looks people were shooting our way. Chris seemed to ignore them a lot easier than I did. I guess I still wasn't used to being in a relationship. It had been about two months that we'd been together.

"Happy two months anniversary." I smiled.

"Does that qualify as a long time to you?" Chris asked.

"Yes, considering the circumstances." I snapped.

His brown eyes flicked down to me and he smiled, interlocking our fingers.

"Happy anniversary then." He said.

 

*********************

 

"If a human spirit is grounded for too long it becomes hostile." Ariana said, reading the large book to me.

This was what she called light reading. I visited the Netherworld on Sunday before college resumed again. Chris had gone somewhere. When I saw her on the grass I rushed over. I longed for her to reveal her interaction with Mike, but so far, she'd been quiet.

"That's when they start becoming poisonous." I said, recalling when the Lady of Springwood had cut me with her nails.

"Yep, if it cuts another human, the grey death begins." She stated, shutting the book.

That was morbid. Her gaze lapsed across the way towards Debbie's house and I waited for her to lay her cards on the table. Come on, Ariana.

"Did you speak to him?" I asked.

"I-i tried. He ignored me." She said, voice cracking.

Ouch, that seemed kind of cruel. I suddenly felt an intense loathing for this guy. How could he let prejudice colour his view of her. So what if she was part angel. Did that even matter?

"Well, ain't this a sight." I recognised that voice anywhere.

Eric had appeared, flanked by Evangeline. Her head was lowered and I glared at Eric. He was standing, hands on his hips, smirking down at Ariana.

"Good Morning, Sir." She stood, bowing slightly.

"Pathetic, little angel," He sneered.

"Is that anyway to treat a girl?" Keith had appeared.

He was shorter than Eric, but that didn't stop him. Ariana turned and glanced at Keith, smiling a little. Eric looked unimpressed and started to walk away.

"I have a mission for you, angel," He hissed. "With any luck you won't return alive."

Evangeline looked at Ariana and reached out, patting her shoulder in kindness. Ariana lifted her arm and pressed the panels on her bracelet. Her eyes went wide at seeing the mission and she slumped a little.

"What's up, Ari?" Keith asked.

"He's sending me to Winchester again." She sighed.

"What? That's insane. That place is crawling with ghosts. Some of them are so full of venom that humans have died." Keith snapped.

"I can't clear it properly. Last time a little girl died." She sniffed.

"What if more than one person cleared it?" I asked.

They both looked at me. Ariana sighed and shuffled nervously. Keith walked towards me and touched my shoulder.

"Eric gets really pissed if other legions help." He whispered.

"That's not fair." I said, voice rising.

I walked towards Ariana and took her hands. She looked shocked by my sudden actions. I knew just what to do.

 

********************

 

"Winchester, Junko? Really?" Chris had arrived back and I'd sort of barged into his office.

Ariana had come with me and she seemed ill at ease inside the other legion house. No one paid her any mind apart from unofficial members of the legion like new recruits. Keith had come with us. He was leaning against the far wall, watching, possibly enjoying the show.

"Ariana can't do this alone." I said.

"How many times has he sent you there?" Chris asked Ariana.

She jumped, face tinting red. I guessed she wasn't used to a legion leader responding with concern and kindness.

"Three times, Sir," She said. "Last time I was responsible for something bad."

"I did hear what happened. It wasn't your fault at all. Don't let Eric convince you otherwise," Chris replied.

I glanced at Chris and he met my gaze very quickly, eyes darkening slightly. I looked away and back to Ariana. She looked determined.

"I'll speak to Lemmy and Debbie. We could probably send a few people with you." Chris said.

Ariana's eyes widened and she blinked, eyes glassing over a little. She bowed and said thank you a lot. Keith pushed away from the wall. Before I could react though, she'd rushed over and was hugging me.

"Can Junko come with me?" Ariana asked.

"I'll think about it." Chris replied, and she smiled.

Keith patted my shoulder and led Ariana away. Why did I get the feeling I had been duped?

"S-sorry I interfered." I mumbled.

"You're very good at it." Chris murmured.

He stood and walked towards me. Our eyes met until I glanced at the floor. He leaned down, closing the distance and kissing me. I squeaked at the contact and parted my lips. Ths kiss deepened and we ended up on the couch. When we pulled apart my breathing was heavy and my lips felt swollen.

"Can I ask a question?" I sat up, leaning my head on Chris' shoulder.

"You're going to anyway." He chuckled, using his hand to move my hair from my face.

"What if I wanted to give you my soul?" I said.

"Then it wouldn't be a well thought out decision." He replied, lowering his hand to trace down my arm.

"How long would it take to make a decision like that?" I pestered.

"How long is forever." He murmured, lips tracing my neck.

I gasped when he started sucking the skin, nipping every now and then. My head tilted to the side, allowing him access. His hand continued downwards and skimmed my breast through the material of my dress. I whimpered, face heating up at the sound.

"W-we could at least discuss it." I gasped when he squeezed my breast.

"Or you could be a good girl and listen for once." He replied, teeth grazing my neck again.

I suddenly felt really warm and my skin prickled. Chris' hand paused in its movements and I thought he'd stopped for good until he pulled my hands so I was on his lap, facing him. A nervous sweat broke across my body. I'd never done this before. My hands trembled.

"Sorry, I'm nervous." I said, shakily.

"It's ok. Just get used to being close." Chris replied.

"How long have I got?" I mumbled.

"Forever." He smiled this time.

I managed to smile back and couldn't help the feeling of giddyness in my chest. It felt like my heart was going to burst through. I felt light-headed and my emotions were running wild. Was I falling in love?

 


	21. Night Twenty One

 

College started again on Monday and thankfully it was a half day to begin with. I'd already managed to stumble down some stairs and end up in the medical room. No injuries, so lucky me. When classes ended I went straight to the quad.

Keith was already waiting for me. He'd bleeped me earlier and was shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Someone was clearly excited for this.

"Wait till you see this place, Junko." He grinned.

He pressed a few panels on his bracelet and I held his hand. The journey from here lasted less than a minute and when my eyes opened we were standing on a grass verge. Keith tapped my shoulder. I turned and looked up.

Winter sun was peeking behind the clouds and I gasped. Keith wasn't kidding. This place was huge, sprawling. I couldn't see how many acres of land it sat on, but the front view was breath-taking.

"Sarah Winchester kept adding rooms to accomodate all the victims of her husband's rifle company," Keith explained. "There are doors that lead to nowhere. It's some trippy shit."

"And the ghosts?" I asked.

"So many of them. Every year or so, one of the ghosts becomes dangerous and needs to be gotten rid of." He said.

We waited on the grass. It wasn't raining today so that was a relief. Someone appeared across the way and I recognised the small figure as Ariana. She was walking across the grass. As she got closer, her expression was nervous.

"Ari looks worried." Keith said, softly.

"We'll look after her, right." I smiled, and he nodded.

"Hey." She sighed as she paused before us.

I soon discovered where her worry stemmed from. Legion leader Debbie had sent Mike along with us. He arrived and said hello to Keith. I managed a smile at him and he nodded. He did look at Ariana, but said nothing. Well, this just became so awkward.

Lemmy had also sent someone too. A guy was ambling towards us. His hair was dark brown, swept sideways. He was pretty cute in a charming sort of way.

"Keith," He smiled. Keith nodded at him.

"Junko, this is Paul." Ariana introduced us.

"A pleasure to meet you." Paul said.

His accent was thick and British. My eyes flicked to Mike. He was looking at Ariana. She didn't seem to be aware though. She was tinkering with her bracelet. The wind was toying with her hair, making it ghost about her soft features. She glanced up and he looked away. Wow, subtle.

We started walking towards the house. The guys walked together, discussing training. Ariana walked beside me. She didn't look at Mike. This must have been so awkward for her.

"He was looking at you a minute ago." I whispered, and her eyes widened.

"Probably nothing." She replied.

I got the sense she didn't really believe me. What had actually happened when they'd tried to converse.

"What happened when you guys spoke?" I asked, and she bit her lip.

"I waited till he left the legion house with Kellin and walked over. I said hello, he looked at me then walked away." She replied.

My gaze went over my shoulder. I'd just made it obvious what I was doing because Paul smiled.

"It's rude to gossip." He chuckled.

We got to the door and knocked. I noticed a poster across the way, advertising tours around this creep hole. The door flew open and a girl was standing on the other side. Her eyes went to Keith, then to the rest of us.

"Welcome to The Winchester Mystery House, please follow me." She said.

The house was just as weird on the inside. We were in a beautiful foyer. There were lots of archways that led to other places in the house. The hairs on the back of my neck rose. It felt like this place was so haunted that the ghosts had their own gravitational pull.

The girl was rambling on. We were allowed to explore, but to be careful as this place was like a maze and some areas were still unknown. As luck would have it, Keith stuck me with Ariana and Mike. Great, just great.

"Up here." I said.

"Leads to nowhere." Mike stated.

The stairs I had discovered trailed up and I poked my head under to find they stopped at a dead end in the ceiling. We found more like that. Doors that opened to nothing, windows that led into small rooms and random rooms.

At one point I was left with Mike whilst Ariana explored one of the window rooms. I glowered at him. His green eyes flicked down to me.

"Seriously, what is your problem?" He asked.

"How come you ignored Ariana the other day." I snapped.

"Maybe because she's an orphan angel and I'm a demon. Unlike her, I don't have the luxury to date who I like." He shot back.

I pressed my lips together in a thin, displeased line. I knew legion leaders were from fairly elite families, but the actual demons in the legions seemed a mish-mash of social groups. Why should it matter that Ariana was an orphan?

"Plus we have nothing in common." He said.

"Opposites always attract." I quoted, then looked away.

Chris had said that. He'd smiled as he'd said it. I missed that smile everyday that I wasn't with him. My heart pounded in my ears. The other night I had looked up what to do when you fall in love. I'd ended up reading stupid articles and revelling in how many of the symptoms I had.

Mike opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, Ariana had slid out of the room. She paused and glanced between us. Her eyes lingered on Mike then she looked away again, pretending she wasn't looking. He must have noticed because he frowned then.

"I could feel something when I was in that room. I think we need to go up a floor." She said, turning to walk away.

We both follwed. It took about fifteen minutes of looking to locate stairs that didn't lead to nowhere. The next floor was just as weird though. I'd decided that I hated this house. The corridor we were in stretched around a bend. Something skittered behind me and I whipped round.

"What's wrong?" Ariana asked.

"I-i thought I heard something." I mumbled.

Mike's bracelet bleeped and he pressed one of the panels.

"Hey guys, we're in the basement. There's scratches everywhere down here," Keith said. "They lead to a laundry shoot. This ghost has been travelling through it."

The air felt thick and something cold touched my neck. I leapt back, yelping. A woman was stooped behind me. Her black hair was lank and trailing along the floor. Black venom was dotted along the carpet.

With a deafening wail, she lunged and started clawing the air. Ariana leapt in front of me. I was eager to see what she could do. Angels must have different powers. Ariana drew her hand through the air. A beautiful bow appeared. She grasped the middle of the bow, gripping the string. A pure, white arrow appeared. With a snap of her wrist, the arrow fired.

The ghost howled as it was struck. It reeled back, lunging again, like a predator. A gun shot echoed and i realised Mike had removed one of the guns from his holster. The shot was good and sent the ghost careening backwards. It landed without a sound, but was still here, hissing like a feral animal.

Ariana pulled the string again and fired another arrow while the ghost was distracted. This one connected with the ghost's crooked arm. It moved like a spider and launched itself at Ariana. She jumped back, but the ghost was fast and slashed at her with a claw-like hand.

"No." I whimpered.

My instincts kicked in and I pushed her sideways. We both went stumbling into a wall, but the ghost's attack had not connected. The ghost seemed to sense weakness and flew at us again. I closed my eyes and braced myself for the moment when those venomous claws touched my skin. Nothing happened.

I peeked through a slit in my eye. My vision was blurred and I opened my eye more. Mike was in front of us. His arm was raised above his head. The ghost's nails were embedded in his arm, slicing straight through his jacket. Venom dripped down and the ghost let go, jumping backwards, circling.

Mike slumped down, gripping his arm. Someone whimpered next to me and I glanced at Ariana. Her eyes were shining with unshed tears. I looked to the ghost. It had us on the run. Ariana crawled round me and in front of Mike. She gripped his arm and her fingers seemed to be trembling.

A gunshot echoed and I lifted my head in time to see Keith and Paul. Paul was the one who had shot the ghost, catching it in the back of its head. It circled round, snarling at them.

"Come on, sweetheart." Keith grinned.

The ghost side-stepped and Keith lifted his hand. He had a knife. He launched it like a dart and it hit the ghost right between the eyes. Venom leaked everywhere, but the ghost finally disintegrated. I looked at Mike. The edges of his neck were turning blue. Keith sensed my unease. He appeared next to me.

"Let Ari do her thing." He smiled, winking at me.

Ariana had closed her bare hands over Mike's arm. A soft, pink light shone from her hands. It grew brighter, more luminous. The injuries were disappearing and the blue tinges on Mike's neck were vanishing. I gasped when a pair of white wings sprouted from her back. Once the injuries were gone, the pink glow disappeared and the wings curled inwards.

"And that is why we have angels." Keith said.

Ariana moved her hands and seemed to realise where she was sitting. She got up really quickly and stumbled back. Her face was bright red.

"S-sorry, got carried away." She mumbled.

I stared at her and realised her symptoms mirrored mine. Her small hands were still trembling and she looked pale. She'd used so much energy to make sure Mike was safe. She didn't just like him, she loved him.

"You did awesome." Keith said, and she nodded.

I glanced at Mike to find he was watching her. He stood, eventually. Keith held out a hand to me.

"You all right?" He asked, as he helped me up.

"Y-yeah, it's just sad." I murmured.

Keith seemed to register my meaning and his gaze followed Ariana's retreating form. She hadn't waited for the rest of us. It was like she'd realised that she'd inadvertatly shown her soul to everyone. It was beautiful and heart-breaking all at once.

When we got outside it was raining, but it was light and fine. I took a look at Ariana. She was standing across the way. Her colour was returning, but she was looking everywhere, but avoiding looking at us. She scrubbed her eyes, urgently. I walked forward and was stopped by Paul. He smiled then and nodded. Mike was actually walking towards her.

Were they going to talk? I smiled then and watched as he touched her arm. She looked stunned, eyes widening and she looked behind her, like she thought he wanted to talk to the tree across the way and had gotten the two of them mixed up. Their conversation was quiet and neither one was giving anything away.

"You coming back to see Chris?" Keith asked.

"Y-yeah, I miss him." I replied, and he smiled too.

"Aww, is he all you think about?" He grinned.

"For your information I think about other stuff." I retorted.

I also wanted to grill Ariana. She and Mike had stopped talking and he was walking back to us. She joined and stood next to me.

When we got back Ariana waited till Keith and Paul were gone. She glanced at Mike and he smiled and walked away.

"So?" I asked.

"We talked and agreed to go on a date." She smiled then, wide, joyous.

"Really? That's amazing." I couldn't help but grin too.

"I need to go get ready." She said, sounding nervous.

I watched her go and started walkiing towards the legion house. I could hear someone walking behind me and the person followed me inside. I turned to say hello, only to come face-to-face with Ashley. She must have been coming back from a mission, but her severe gaze made me think otherwise.

 


	22. Night Twenty-Two

 

My mouth seemed to have stopped working. Was she going to speak to me or simply glare daggers at me? Why'd she hate me, anyways? I offered a smile and started to walk away and then she finally spoke.

"It won't work, you know." She sighed then.

I paused at her words, soft spoken and yet still slightly bitter. I shuffled nervously, wanting to walk away and ignore her completely. Instead, I waited to hear if she'd say more.

"I know you've been going on missions," Ashley continued. "You're putting everyone you go with in danger."

I had considered this often. I was more a liability than anything. I'd managed to get people injured, but hearing it from her made it worse. I was talking before I could stop myself.

"I'll learn to defend myself then." I murmured.

She chuckled then, "You can't defend yourself. Humans are weak. Always have been, always will be."

I'd heard enough and started to ascend the stairs.

"You'll end up just like Sabrina." She said, and then I heard her heels clicking away.

I had paused on the first step, eyes prickling. However, instead of feeling sad, I knew what I had to do. My feet carried me to the top of the stairs and along the corridor. I knocked on the office door and opened it. When I saw Chris, my heart fluttered, but I had to be determined.

"I-i want to be trained for missions." I demanded.

"Good afternoon to you too," He chuckled. I kind of expected him to say no, call me weak. "Ok then."

"What? Really?" I said, blinking dumbly at him.

"Yes, really."

**********************

 

This was the worst. I'd ended up coming to the training room straight after lectures. I'd borrowed some sweatpants from Victoria and paired them with a t-shirt. I'd tied my hair back. Andy had trained me last time so he'd probably be my mentor again. Poor him.

I didn't expect my boyfriend to walk through the door. He even looked hot in sweatpants and a plain, black t-shirt. I noticed his piercings were ever present.

"You should take them out, maybe," I faltered when Chris smirked. "It would hurt if I managed to snag one."

"That's assuming you manage to do any damage to me." He grinned.

I narrowed my eyes at him. I guessed I wasn't really in the same league as a legion leader, but did he have to be so smug about it. My lower lip jutted out and he laughed.

"I'll have you know I'm very dangerous." I snapped.

"You don't say. I always thought you were like a mouse." He replied, dodging when I threw a nearby volleyball at him.

Most of the techniques I learned were defensive and involved rolling away or avoiding attacks. I knew ghosts could touch things, but I also knew it took a lot of energy to do so.

"I can move out the way. What about offensive stuff?" I said.

"I'd rather you didn't run straight into danger." Chris replied, sitting down.

I pouted again and grinned. He'd turned his back on me. I snuck closer and lifted my hands. I got right behind him. I was so close I could see the glint of the spikes on his head and see how soft his hair was. I lowered my hands just below his shoulders. How ticklish were demons?

Before I could do anything, he'd looked round, smirking at me.

"I knew you were there." He said.

"Shut up. I scared you." I smiled, reaching out to tickle him.

He grabbed my hand, yanking me closer so I was on his lap. He tickled me and I started laughing.

"N-no, stop it. T-this isn't fair." I gasped between laughter.

Somehow I managed to twist my body and face him. Our eyes met as my giggles subsided. Our noses were inches apart and my eyes quickly avoided his. His lips touched mine and I parted my lips willingly. My hands slid round his shoulders.

I had almost forgotten that I was on top of him until his hands slid down. I gasped when he squeezed the backs of my legs, pressing me closer. I was soon lowered onto the training mats with Chris on top of me. Our lips were still connected. His hand was still holding my leg, pressing us closer.

We pulled apart, reluctantly. I knew my face was warm and flushed. His pupils had nearly dilated till they were black. He seemed to be fighting for control.

"Tell me to stop." He said, voice slightly deeper.

A part of me really wanted to carry on and see how far we'd go, but another side of me was worried. Something was niggling at the back of my mind. It must have shown on my face because he frowned.

"D-do you love me?" I asked.

He pulled back, sitting slightly away from me. He hadn't replied and I sat up too. It had been a few months. What was the benchmark for love? I had read that people say it when they feel it. I'd been feeling it for a couple of weeks now.

"I care about you." Chris said.

"Oh." I murmured.

My throat felt thick and I swallowed. Chris shifted closer and I let him bring me onto his lap again. My head pressed against his chest. I could smell him.

"I would rather fall in love slowly, get to know you properly." He said, gripping my chin so we could look at each other.

"Did you and Sabrina fall in love slowly?" I asked, and his eyes flashed with melancoly, but it disappeared.

"No, we fell too quickly." He replied.

I barely heard the footsteps till someone cleared their throat. I glanced round to see Lemmy staring at us. He was grinning, like he'd discovered something he shouldn't.

"How adorable." He snickered.

Chris narrowed his eyes and Lemmy held up his free hand, the one not clutching a glass of whiskey.

"Sorry to bother you both. Eric called a meeting," Lemmy sighed then. "Thought you should know."

I glanced at Chris and he rolled his eyes. I clambered off him and he stood. I stayed seated on the mat.

"When for?" Chris asked.

"Right now. This second." Lemmy stated.

"Well, I'd like to get changed first, or is that not allowed." Chris snapped.

Lemmy chuckled and nodded. Chris glanced at me, leaning down and pressing a sweet kiss to my lips. I smiled and felt my cheeks heat up. Chris stood and joined Lemmy. I watched them go and sighed, laying back on the mat.

The training room ceiling was open, revealing the purple sky, streaked with red. I laid there for a while, just watching the sky.

 

*******************

_2 Hours earlier_

"May God have mercy on your soul." The man said.

The demon screamed and disintegrated, ash scattering across the pathway. The man sighed, closing the bible with a snap of his wrist. The young preist with him was smiling.

"That was amazing, Father Samuels," The man beamed. "Truely a sight to behold."

"Indeed it is. There is nothing more purifying than destroying these foul creatures." Father Samuels replied, glancing skywards.

The sky above had darkened considerably, turning almost blood red as day time transitioned into night. Father Samuels seated himself on the back of his pick-up truck. His eyes went to the house where that monster had been loitering.

He'd heard rumours of this house. Local legend stated it was haunted. He sighed, wearily. If such a thing was true then he would be the one to solve the problem. The young preist had sat down too.

"How goes your son's schooling?" He asked.

"Very well, although it perplexes me." Father Samuels admitted.

"How so?" The young preist asked.

"My son studies sports," Father Samuels said. "I rather hoped he would take after myself."

"Yes, it is rather disappointing when children do not adhere to the plans laid out for them." The young preist agreed.

"Indeed, however my son has proved himself useful," Father Samuels smiled then. "He has informed me that Crocell has emerged. Not only that, but he holds a young girl within his grasp."

The young priest gasped, dramaticially. If he was a stranger then it could be said that the gasp was put on, but the young priest meant every word of his devouteness. Father Samuels stood, unscrewing the cap on his hip flask, taking a long swig. He screwed the top back on and tucked it back into his pocket.

"May the blood of Christ cleanse us." Father Samuels said, solemnly.

The two of them climbed into the truck and Father Samuels marked a circle on the map laid out on the dashboard. He put the truck into drive and they pulled away from the house.

A screech of fury rose from the house as they drove away and a claw mark appeared on the window, black venom streaking the glass and corroding it.

 


	23. Night Twenty-Three

 

My joints ached. I'd spent the last twenty-four hours training. Hayley had seen me exercising and had taken it upon herself to help me. She's worked me until I could barely stand. Instead I'd found myself lying on the my bed, wishing that I hadn't been so eager to learn how to defend myself.

My phone bleeped and I eyed it, warily. Collette had messaged me a few times, possibly to arrange a meet-up, but I was in no mood for it. Now I was the one doing the avoiding. Afer what Hunter had said I was afraid of something happening to Chris. Like Hunter might pull his Dad out of his pocket like a Pokemon. Crazed Dad, I choose you.

Eventually I'd have to get up and have a shower so I dragged myself from the bed and left the safety of my room. The hallways were abuzz that Saturday morning. Victoria waved at me as I slouched by.

"Lightweight." She laughed.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm not used to exercise." I groaned.

I promptly dumped my stuff on the bench outside the shower cubicle and stipped. There were a few bruises on my body, but I ignored them. I turned the shower on and yelped when the water gushed out cold. Once it was warm I slipped under the stream and washed my aching body.

My eyes closed and I thought about everything. My mind was a frantic mixture of emotions and I sighed. Once I'd finished I dried myself and put my Minions PJs back on. Time to slope back to my pit for a well deserved rest. The hallways were quiet again and I opened my dorm door.

Two seconds was all it took to notice the figure seated on my bed. A further two seconds to realise it was Michael.

"My God, you scared the crap outta me." I sputtered.

"Pathetic." He muttered.

"Excuse me!?" I shreiked. "You're in my room."

He shrugged and stared round my dorm room, glancing at the framed photo's of my family, brown eyes trailing over the stuffed toys and then back to me.

"Nice place." He said, noncommitally.

"Why do I not believe you?" I snapped.

Michael certainly was an interesting demon. Why was he even here? Last time he'd stuck up for me. He seemed like someone that didn't open up very easily.

"Why are you here anyways?" I asked, dumping my shower gel on the desk.

"To take in the scenary." He smirked then. Hmm, infuriating.

"Ha ha sarcasm."

"I need your help." He said, surprising me.

My help? I parted my lips and his dark eyes narrowed so I closed my mouth. I wasn't expecting this.

"What do you want my help for?" I found myself asking.

"Do you know what a possession demon is?" He sighed then.

Chris had told me about those sorts of demons. The sort that never stopped possessing humans. They enjoyed it and didn't want to follow anyone but themselves.

"Yeah, I've heard of them." I replied.

"I have a friend that needs help and I can't get too close." He said, looking at me again.

"This friend is human, right?" I grinned.

"Yes, she's human." He grumbled.

My smile grew wider and he glowered at me. I sat on the chair in front of my desk and scooted closer towards him.

"How come you can't stop it?" I pressed, and he shifted nervously.

"Because she likes him and thinks he's her friend. She doesn't realise that he's after her soul."

He was no longer looking at me and I realised that he must care about this girl a great deal to want to help her like this. I guessed I'd have to earn her trust and get her to be my friend. I was pretty socially awkward but it seemed reasonable.

"Sure, I can help." I replied, and Michael nodded.

For once he was quiet, almost contemplative. Dark eyes downcast to stare at his boots. He shifted again and his belts clinked.

"You're a good person." I smiled.

He smiled then, still not looking at me, "Don't tell anyone that."

 

***********************

 

My mission was to befriend this girl. Easier said than done. Although I thought I recognised her when Michael showed me a picture.

"I know her!" I yelped, and he recoiled.

We had sat on the steps once I'd gotten dressed. The girl in the photo was Sophie. I recognised her from when Keith and I had searched the music rooms. I glanced at the picture again. Her eyes were soft and kind, green flecked with blue. The same circle glasses sat on her nose. Her blonde hair was slightly darker than Collette's.

"Well, she does go to this college." He replied.

"She likes music. Keith and I met her." I continued. My quizzical gaze fell on Michael again.

"I saved her one night." Michael said.

"That's incredible. " I grinned, and he looked away.

Sophie seemed a fairly easy person to approach. To say I was over confident was the under statement of the century. Michael seemed really on edge though.

"I made friends with her and ended up looking out for her since her parents died." He said, almost sadly.

I knew I had to do this. That afternoon I made my way to the music room where I'd last seen Sophie. It was easy to find her, seated on a chair, playing the violin. I paused in the doorway and watched. I waited till she'd stopped and lowered the instrument, clapping as I entered. Her bright eyes looked up, landing on me.

"Oh, hello." She beamed.

"You remember me?" I asked.

"Yes, I do. You were here with Keith that time." She smiled again. My smile faltered when I realised Keith hadn't told her his name.

"I thought I'd pay you a visit." I murmured.

"Thank you. We could get a coffee together sometime." She sighed, setting the violin in the case.

"That sounds great." I replied.

A shadow darted across the wall and vanished into the corner. I pretended I hadn't seen it. My eyes went back to Sophie. She was clutching her case and smiling again.

"How about today? I'm free all day," She questioned. I nodded. "Cool, I'll just nip to the toilet and then we can go."

She left and my nerves were alight, screaming for me to make an excuse and go to the bathroom with her.

"Well, aren't you a cutie." A voice said.

My gaze went to the shadows and I saw him, leaning against the wall. A tall guy with blond hair and bright eyes. A trail of blood leaked from the side of his mouth to his chin. I back-stepped and he moved away from the wall and approached me. Like a cat stalking a mouse.

"Did Michael ask you to come and see us?" He smirked.

I pressed my lips into a thin line and his smirk grew more devious. His hand reached out and was a breath away from my face when he paused, frowning.

"I see you and Crocell are good friends." He regained his momentum, grinning again.

"What do you want with Sophie?" I snapped, trying to keep my cool.

"I want what every demon wants, petal," He had leaned down so his breath fanned my ear. "Even your demon lover wants it. Why don't you ask him how much he craves your soul."

I jumped back and glared at him. He stood to full height, still grinning. There was something quite sinister about him.

"Leave Sophie alone." I hissed.

"I have no desire to do that, petal," He smirked then. Creep. "Her life is a dream and I want that dream to end."

There was something quite melancholic about the way he said that. I parted my lips and stepped back.

"I'm not leaving Sophie." I said, and he quirked a brow.

"You will eventually." He shrugged and I glowered at him.

"I'm back." Sophie's happy voice cut through our conversation.

I looked back to find the demon was gone. My face must have gone pale because Sophie grasped my hand and looked worried.

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, totally fine." I murmured.

We left the music rooms behind. Sophie walked next to me, chatting away. I nodded and offered agreements here and there. This might be more difficult than I'd anticipated. We sat in the cafe outside of college and ordered drinks.

"What made you want to visit me?" Sophie asked once we'd got our drinks.

"You seemed really sweet and I wanted to be friends." I replied. Her face lit up.

She was very similar to myself and I liked that. I'd spent so much time with Collette that I hadn't noticed how badly she treated me sometimes. It was blessing that Sophie and I had become friends again. I felt like I was being observed. My gaze flicked to the window and I noticed the blond demon watching me.

His head was slightly bent forward, blond hair slightly obscuring his face. His eyes were a light brown and glaring at me. Yep, cause that's not the creepiest thing ever. My gaze went back to Sophie.

"The dreams were weird, ya know," She was saying. "There's always a blond guy. He's beautiful."

She probably assumed her relationship with ol' crazy eyes was a dream and nothing more. If she had no idea then this would be harder than I thought. My eyes flicked towards the window and the blond guy grinned at me.

"I think Keith would like to see you again." I smiled.

"Really? That would be, wow, just wow." She gushed.

"Very clever, petal. Maybe I'm with the wrong human." A sly voice whispered in my ear.

"I could talk to Keith and you guys could hang out." I ignored Blondie and focused on Sophie.

She seemed happier now and was talking about meeting Keith again. I smiled and sideways looked at the blond guy. He looked annoyed and glared at me. Sophie and I finished our drinks. She nearly hugged the life out of me when she left. I watched her go and was about to leave when an icy hand pulled me into the alley.

The blond guy had clamped his hand over my mouth. Those eyes were staring into my soul. His face broke into a grin again.

"Think you're clever, petal?" He smirked.

"Smarter than you." I shot back when he lowered his hand.

"So smart you didn't arrange to walk home with anyone. The streets are dangerous, petal." He replied.

"Yeah, I might get attacked by a weirdo like you." I snapped.

"The jokes practically write themselves." He shrugged then. Tangental much.

A car engine roared nearby and we both paused. Something wasn't right. A man appeared in the mouth of the alleyway. He was a figure of average height, clutching a book. My eyes squinted. I glanced at the blond guy to find he was watching the stranger.

"Demon." The man spoke with such ferocity.

The puzzle pieces seemed to be slotting together. I pushed Blondie away and stepped in front of him. The man appeared to be walking closer until his features were no longer obscured by the Winter sunlight. This man looked like Hunter, an older version, but still.

"Stay back." I yelled.

The man, Derek Samuels, stepped towards me. His eyes were crazed and I took a slight back step. I glanced round to find Blondie was watching. Michael probably hadn't anticipated this happening.

"Step aside, young lady," Derek Samuels stated, eyes trained on the blond demon. "That creature deserves God's divine punishment."

"Who are you to decide that?" I snapped, and he faltered, stunned for a moment.

"I am God's prophet. A messenger and I have his almighty blessing." Derek said.

I refused to move. Derek's idyllic expression became hostile. His features became ugly, mottled with fury. Reaching into his suit he removed a serrated blade. My heart leapt to my throat as he lunged at me.

His hands didn't touch me as Blondie leapt forward and pushed Derek back, sending the man flying out of the alleyway. His cold hand snatched mine and we ran. Derek wouldn't be down for long. My breath caught in my throat when Blondie scooped me up and leapt into the air.

We landed with a crash into a nearby store. The people inside, a man in an apron and a woman with greying hair, looked stunned by us. I supposed this sort of thing didn't happen very often.

"Get out." The woman said.

She looked like she'd swallowed something very bitter. I started apologising and Blondie looked like he couldn't care less. It was my turn to grab his hand and run. The streets seemed to stretch on forever. The growl of Derek Samuels car was behind us, a few blocks by the sound of it.

I lifted my arm to press the panels on my bracelet, snatching Blondie's hand in time for us to vanish into the Netherworld and land face first on the grass.

"Ha, I win that bet." Lemmy's laugh greeted my ears.

A groan escaped from my sore throat and I sat up. I'm definitely more bruised than I was. My whole body felt like it had been run over by a steam roller.

"Oh my God, are you all right?" Ariana is above me, Her eyes are frantic.

Blondie is now sitting up and he runs a hand through his hair, eyes flicking towards me. Ariana was sitting in front of me, healing my injuries.

"A possession demon." Lemmy had stepped into focus, glowering at Blondie. "That gets you into big trouble here, kid."

Blondie had the gall to look a little ashamed. His gaze flicked to me again and then back to Lemmy.

"Don't hurt him," My voice is a croak. "He saved me from Derek Samuels."

Lemmy's piercing glare landed on Blondie, who was now wide-eyed and stunned. Derek Samuels is a name that clearly carried some weight because Lemmy nodded and walked away.

"Thank you, pe-I mean-Junko." He mumbled.

"No problem-" I trailed off. He had never supplied a name.

"Pelle." He said, and shifted nervously.

The sky overhead darkened and I knew we had bigger problems than rogue possession demons if Hunter's Dad was already in town.


	24. Night Twenty-Four

 

**Human World**

**That same night**

"Insolent, little welp." Derek Samuels screeched, knocking Hunter hard in the stomach.

Hunter doubled over in a bid to protect himself from the blows. He knew they'd stop eventually. His father would relent and give in eventually. Derek landed one final kick to Hunter's abdomen and paused at last.

They had met in an alley way, far from anyones' prying eyes. The young priest sat across the way, taking in the scene, but saying nothing. Hunter struggled to his feet and spat the blood out from where his father had generously punched him in the mouth.

"Fuck you," Hunter seethed, causing Derek's face to darken again. "How was I supposed to know this would happen?"

Derek lunged at his son, after a gulp from his canteen. He grasped Hunter by the scruff of his neck, wrinkling the fabric of his shirt.

"I wanted an audience with that girl. I expected no demons to be around." Derek hissed, face purpling even more so.

He let go and Hunter stumbled again, grasping the wall. The young priest cleared his throat and Derek turned on him.

"Father, perhaps we could go meet this young lady at her dorm." He said, pleasantly.

Derek nodded and clutched his chin between his fingers. Hunter chuckled then, making his father glower at him.

"She's gone. You better believe he's taken her somewhere." Hunter grinned.

Derek took another swig from his canteen, downing the whole thing. Hunter watched in disgust. This man, this creature was his father. He hadn't told Collette, had never spoken of his father.

"Gentlemen, this is very unbecoming." A voice said, causing them all to look to the mouth of the alleyway.

Street lights shone, casting shadows over the figure in the wide brimmed hat at the entrance of the alley.

 

*********************

 

**Junko's POV**

"What should I do?" I groaned.

Andy had snuck back to my dorm in the early hours to grab a bag and some clothes for me. He'd seen Hunter near the dorms. How bad was this gonna get? How long would I be stuck in the Netherworld.

"Do not worry, Junko," Tris grinned. "His lord highness, Lucifer, welcomes all."

"And college? What about that?" I sighed, slumping my shoulders.

"Why are you whining? You got to meet me." Pelle grinned.

Tris had spent the better part of the morning sorting his paperwork out. She frowned at him and shook her head.

"And how is that a good thing?" Chris asked.

He'd appeared behind me, hands on the back of the chair. Pelle blinked and glanced between Chris and I.

"So, you're my boss now?" Pelle grinned again.

"Unfortunately, yes." Chris replied.

Tris finished the paperwork and handed Pelle his bracelet. He took it and analysed it. He seemed somewhat confused by it.

"It goes on your wrist," Chris smirked. "You know, the part that's attached to your arm and shoulder."

Pelle pouted at him and slipped the bracelet on. I looked up at Chris and he smiled.

"Be nice." I reminded him.

"I'm always nice, Junko." He raised a brow and I blushed.

The door flew open and Andy strolled in. He handed me the bag and smiled. He looked a little anxious though and even Tris had stopped typing to listen to him.

"The dorms were clear when I left, but I know Derek is there somewhere," Andy said, twirling a strand of his hair. "It was the unmistakable stench of vodka and failure."

I knew this meant I was stuck here. My education was at stake. I had two more years left of college. Tris frowned at me and started typing again. She smiled at last.

"I think there is a way you could do your course," She grinned. "Of course it'll be online."

This was good news, but it still left a couple of things unsolved. Collette was still at the college and she was with Hunter. How dangerous would he be to her? Plus Sophie and Victoria were still there. Anything could happen to them? Derek was clearly unpredictable.

"What about Collette?" I asked.

"I think all we can do is wait." Andy replied.

He sounded unsure, but he was right. What choice did we have? Tris stopped typing and sat back.

"So, what super awesome mission can I go on?" Pelle asked.

Andy stared at him, like he'd only just noticed he was there. He glanced at Chris, who rolled his eyes.

"The toilets need cleaning." Chris said.

Andy snorted a laugh. Pelle almost smiled, but stopped himself. I covered my mouth to avoid laughing.

"Seriously." Pelle whined.

"Fine, Andy meet your new trainee." Chris said, sternly.

Andy opened his mouth in silent horror, protest nearly bubbling out of his mouth. Michael picked the perfect time to walk in.

"No way, Michael should train him." Andy protested.

Michael glanced from me, then to Pelle, narrowing his dark eyes. If looks could kill.

"Fuck you," Michael snapped. "I'm not training a possession demon."

Chris was watching them and I waited for him to say something. They bickered for a few more minutes.

"Or you could both clean out the manticore pens." Chris suggested, casually.

Michael's eyes widened and Andy pursed his lips together. Chris smirked at them both, waiting for one of them to break first. I watched on in fascination.

"Ok, fine. I don't want to clean out the manticore pens," Andy lamented. "Those things fuckin' hurt when they bite."

Michael smirked then and handed some paperwork to Tris. She accepted it and laid it on the desk, before standing.

"Break time." She beamed, leaving the room.

Chris leaned down, hugging me a little. I smiled at the sign of affection. Andy rolled his eyes, but smiled. Pelle was staring at us, seemingly putting two and two together.

"Oh my fuck, are you two together?" He yelped.

Andy frowned at him and Michael pressed his palm to his forehead. My face heated up somewhat.

"Does it concern you?" Chris asked. Pelle opened his mouth again. "Of course it doesn't."

He promptly shut his mouth and pouted. Wow, shot down. Chris let go of me and took my hand, leading me away. I waved at Andy, who waved back, smiling. I waved at Michael, who nodded and then Pelle, who looked stunned.

I guessed I'd be staying with Chris. This was a bit more permenant than I'd expected. We got to his room and I set my bag down. The fear was starting to set in now. I sat on the bed, pulling my knees to my chin.

Chris removed his jacket and left it on the chair. He tapped my shoulder, budging me forward so he could sit behind me. I curled into him when his arms wrapped round my shoulders.

"I'm scared." I murmured.

"I know, but everything will work out." He assured me.

I nestled my face into his chest, breathing him in. I was still transfixed by all the tattoos. I reached up and touched the one on his neck. A candle and a coffin. How appropriate.

"What does it say?" I asked.

"I thought you said you studied English." He smirked.

"Think you're so smart." I pouted.

"I always am." He grinned.

Jerkwad. I peered at the tattoo. _I was cryin' on Saturday night_. How bizarre. I pulled back to think about it.

"Why?" I asked.

"Why not?" He mimicked.

"Don't be a jerk." I shot back.

"You love it." He smirked.

Debatable. I laughed a little and rested my head on his chest again, listening for the heart beat that wasn't there.

"One day will you show me your true form." I murmured.

The sky had darkened to mauve and I saw his adam's apple bob. I'd made him nervous. This was interesting. I wanted to know him and I didn't care.

"Maybe." He replied, pressing a kiss to my head.

I smiled slightly and closed my eyes, comfort giving way to sleep. Every cloud has a silver lining and this was one of them.

 


	25. Night Twenty-Five

 

My life had truly become a horror film. I had been under several illusions about living in the NetherWorld. The first being that I would get to spend all my time with Chris. Nah, that was a definite no-no. He worked all week and I didn't usually see him till night time. My other illusion was regarding my adjustment here.

The NetherWorld was different to my world in many ways. Demons would roam the town past the bases, most of them not in human forms. They were openly hostile to me unless I was with another demon, which meant I had company wherever I went.

The demons that were in a vaguely human form would sneer at me, like I was a piece of living garbage. This made me feel kinda crappy. I spent a lot of time attempting to find some little hidden nook so I could hide from this strange world.

Today I had pushed open a large, wooden door and found a massive hall. It was the kind of place where balls were held. I shut the door and wandered in. The walls were a soft, salmon pink. The floor was so shiny, I could near enough see my own face. Pillars lined the way to a throne across the way.

Probably shouldn't sit on it. I imagined a king seated on it in all his splendor with a queen next to him. I made my way closer and stared at the chandellier on the ceiling. It twinkled softly. It looked like it was made of crystal. I squinted at the mural on the ceiling. I had never seen anything quite like it.

It was something akin to what you might see in a church. There were angels; beautiful and glowing. Then there were demons; gnarled and gruesome. It looked like it was telling a story. I parted my lips in wonder.

"Pretty, isn't it?" A girl spoke from behind me.

I yelped and turned. Ashley was leaning against the wall. How had she found me? Had she been following me? I gasped and pressed a hand to my chest to still my beating heart.

"Don't look so shocked. I used to come here as a child and pretend I was a princess." She said, solemnly.

I nodded and stepped a little closer. Maybe, just maybe we could patch things up. We barely knew each other. I could barely imagine her as a little girl especially since I could barely imagine demons as children.

"The mural is beautiful." I murmured, and she smiled at last.

"Yes, it is. It's an old legend here in the NetherWorld," She said, then paused. I stared at her. "Sorry, I forget you're not from here."

"I'd like to hear it." I replied, and she looked like she might cry.

"O-ok. Once upon a time there were three brothers. One of them was good and just, the other wanted to be just the same and the third longed to not be forgotten. Years passed and the brothers grew. The eldest created many amazing things," She paused, and cleared her throat.

"The middle brother created everything you see before you here. The third brother was forgotten and eventually he fell in love with a mortal woman. The woman only had eyes for the middle brother though."

She sounded whimsical and dreamy as she spoke. I tilted my head and listened. This sounded so far-fetched, but also magical.

"Who were these brothers? Did the third one ever get to be with his beloved?" I badgered her, and she laughed a little.

"The first brother has many names. You humans know him as God, the second is Lucifer, his royal highness and the third-" She petered out.

Lucifer had fallen in love with a human, a woman like me. Ashley sighed and walked towards me. At first I thought she was going to hit me, but instead she took my hand and led me out the door and down several winding hallways. We stopped at a curtain and she pulled a cord.

The curtains ghosted aside and revealed a man with severe brown eyes. His face was angular and I couldn't meet his eyes. Next to him was a woman. Her hair was fair and her eyes were brown, but gentler. In her arms was a bundle. I could see the baby. The portrait was framed in gold and I glanced back to Ashley.

"His royal highness Lucifer and his wife, Elizabeth." She said, stepping next to me.

"And the baby?" I asked, and she raised a brow at me.

"Christopher." She murmured.

The puzzle pieces fit together for me and I pulled my eyes from the baby in Elizabeth's arms. Ashley was watching me again.

"I had no idea." I whispered.

"That is not your fault," She replied, laughing again. "History seems to be repeating itself."

She looked morose now. I thought of her wedding to her betrothed and if she really wanted to marry him.

"You're going to get married." I stated, and she nodded.

"Yes, I am. He's a wonderful demon," Ashley whispered.

 _But he's not the one I wanted_. Her tone said enough and I felt bad for her. She noticed and sighed softly.

"I can accept I've lost," She said, standing slightly taller.

She looked resilient and strong. I envied her that. I was weak and powerless and unworthy. I shifted and she noticed, her face becoming a mask of worry.

"You remind me of me," She whispered, swallowing a little. "Maybe that's why I was so mean."

I angled my face to glance at her and she smiled, sadly. She grasped the cord and the curtains closed, obscuring Lucifer, his wife and child from me. Ashley touched my shoulder and walked away. I watched her go. I turned away from the portrait and walked away.

I didn't glance back. I had found out something that was unexpected. The weight on my shoulders shifted. My thoughts also went to Lucifer's brother. She had faltered. Where had he gone? Was he still around?

The hallways were long and I found myself back in the entrance hall, staring out the window. The sky over head rumbled and I could see groups of legion demons training on the grass or walking to and fro. I tilted my head and watched them.

"Junko?"

I jumped when Chris' hand touched my shoulder. He sat in front of me. I smiled when I saw him. I couldn't help it.

"Sorry, I was just watching the world go by." I murmured.

My eyes shifted downwards towards my lap and he took my hands in his. I swallowed and heaved a sigh.

"Why don't we go and get lunch together." He suggested.

"Really?" I asked, looking at him finally.

He smiled and nodded, reaching up and moving my hair from my face. I followed when he stood and jumped a little when he took my hand.

 

**********************

 

Victoria shifted on the bench. She'd been to Junko's room and knocked twice. No reply. She looked at her phone and at the text she'd sent Junko. Her lips twisted into a pout.

"Hey Vicky." Hunter.

She scowled at hearing his voice. Was he seriously talking to her? She kept glaring at her phone to avoid looking at him. He sat next to her and she shifted away from him.

"Go away." She hissed.

"Now that's no way to speak to your ex, is it?" His tone was mocking.

Victoria stood and rounded on him. She almost gasped when she saw his lower lip was swollen and a purple bruise had formed on his cheek. If he had shown up like this when they were together, she would have worried, been so afraid for him. Now she felt a sick sense of satisfaction.

"Leave me alone." She growled.

She went to turn away and he cleared his throat before she could get two steps away. She halted and waited for whatever biting comment he was going to say.

"So, where's Junko?" He asked, and she frowned.

She opened her mouth, but did not turn around. He had always treated Junko like a blight and a hinderance. Why did he suddenly care so much?

"I don't know." She murmured, and didn't know if he could hear her.

"That's sad. I thought she'd tell you where she went or how she got there." He replied, and she gulped.

Victoria stalked away across the quad. For some reason, she started running, hoping he wouldn't follow. She entered the college main building and peeked out the window. Hunter was still seated on the bench. She watched him for a few minutes and his head shot up and he looked right at her.

Her eyes widened and she ducked down, entire body shaking. When she looked again, he was retreating.

"What're you doing?" A voice said.

She looked round and saw a small bespectled girl looking at her. She was clutching some music textbooks. Victoria tried to smile, but couldn't.

"N-nothing." Victoria replied.

"You know Junko, right?" The girl continued, and Victoria found herself nodding.

"Ok, well then, we need to talk," The girl said, pushing up her glasses. "I'm Sophie, by the way."

Victoria nodded and stood, glancing around, hoping Hunter wouldn't appear. She followed Sophie down a flight of stairs and into the music rooms. She'd never been down here before. Sophie sat on a bench in front of a grand piano.

Victoria grabbed a chair, dragging it across the carpet and sitting in front of Sophie. She waited and took a steadying breath.

"Do you know where Junko is?" Victoria asked.

"Yes, I do know where she is," Sophie said, peeking from beneath her glasses. "You must be prepared though."

Victoria nodded and squared her shoulders. What on earth was going on?

 


	26. Night Twenty-Six

 

"Gone." She murmured.

I found myself in Chris' office that morning. I'd finished a few assignments and sent them off and was now listening to Legion Leader Joan. She was a petit woman with straight, black hair. She took a shaky breath. I had never seen a legion leader nervous, but she had every right to be. She was the second oldest after Chris. She was leaning on her hands, not speaking anymore.

"Gone where, Joan? What were their last co-ordinates?" Lemmy asked, taking a sip of whiskey.

She glanced at him and moved her hands swiftly away from her mouth. Her eyes went to me and she managed a wry smile. Her shoulders were tensed and her foot kept tapping an insistent rhythm against the carpet.

"I sent them to a house in San Diego," She whispered, voice scratchy. "It was a simple mission."

The 'they' she was referring to were two of her legion. Their names were Oli and Ryan. They had been missing now for three days. Next to Joan was Brendon. He was their team mate and Ryan's close friend.

"They should have been back the same day." He intoned.

Lemmy was swirling the whiskey and he sighed. Chris was perched on the edge of his desk, watching. He had barely spoken and I wondered what he was thinking.

"I've got an entire legion afraid of going out." Joan said, sadly. She threaded her fingers together.

"Ryan was a new recruit. He was-" Brendon said, then stopped, shaking his head.

He rested his forehead on his hands, causing tendrils of brown hair to spill over his fingers. I glanced at Chris and he managed a slight smile.

"We could send some of our recruits." Lemmy suggested, then downed his whiskey.

Joan nodded and for a split second she looked as though she might cry. Her vulnerability shone through and I wanted to comfort her so badly.

"I should send some with you." Joan said, quickly.

"No, your team stays here," Lemmy replied. "I will personally lead the mission."

 

*************************

 

This was a mission that I got to go on as well. The house in question was abandonned and was in ruins. It was along a desolate stretch of road surrounded on all sides by forest. Winter was slinking in and I could see my breath.

"Where would they go?" I asked.

"Unsure." Keith replied.

I had lagged behind to speak to him. Chris and Lemmy were leading the group and talking. I couldn't sense any spirits.

"What are the options?" I pressed on, stepping over a nearby root.

"There's two options, really," Danny grinned. He was part of Lemmy's team. "The first is that they deserted. Decided they didn't wanna do this shit anymore."

That was an interesting option. Did legion demons tire of doing this? Did they get bored of protecting ignorant humans?

"And your other theory?" Michael snapped, glancing at Danny.

"Something got them." Ronnie smirked. He was Danny's friend and team mate.

"S-something?" Hayley whispered, gulping.

A bird flew from a tree over head, causing branches to fall away and Hayley yelped, grabbing hold of me. Her grip was like iron, tight and could probably cut off my circulation. The commotion caused Chris and Lemmy to turn around.

Hayley was still gripping my arm, Danny was grinning, sheepishly and Michael was shaking his head. Lemmy shook his head and sat on an upturned tree.

"Let's take five." He murmured.

Everyone relaxed. I glanced back at the direction where the house was. Eric and his legion were exploring that area with Debbie and her group. Earlier had been my first meeting with Debbie. She was older than Joan. Her mannerisms were brisk and she scrunched her nose at the thought of being teamed up with Eric. Seemed like he was no ones favourite.

This mission was made all the more difficult by the fact that Lemmy knew about Chris and I, but Debbie did not and neither did Lemmy's legion. My eyes flicked to Chris and he looked at me, smirking slightly. My heart warmed suddenly, but I didn't want to make it obvious so I looked away.

My eyes connected with Greg's. He smiled at me. Keith sat next to him and beckoned me over. Everyone else was sitting and talking. I snuck over and Keith grinned.

"So, not gonna talk to lover-boy?" He smirked.

"K-keith, sssh." I whispered, and he glanced at Greg.

"You're awful," Greg said to him, then glanced at me. "Keith told me that you and Chris are like, together."

My eyes went to Keith, who was still grinning that evil grin. Why'd he get me into this mess? I couldn't deny it or anything. I parted my lips to confess.

"What you guys talking about?" Alissa had appeared.

She was a slender girl with blue hair that she'd tied back today. She glanced from my pale, scared face, to Greg's wide-eyed look, then to Keith's smirk.

"N-nothing." I spluttered out.

Luckily, Alissa seemed to buy this explanation and she smiled, seating herself on a log. The wind blew her hair around her shoulders.

"Did you guys hear that Debbie's legion has the highest pass rate amongst demons." Alissa said.

I blinked dumbly at her. Greg pressed his lips together in a thin line that screamed awkward and uncomfortable.

"You don't say." Keith grinned.

Alissa started talking about training and other things. I glanced at Keith and noticed he was smiling, but his eyes were glossing over.

"You're the human, right?" Alissa asked me.

"Um, yes." I replied, startled by her change of topic.

"So, whose slave are you? Who'd you sell your soul to?" She said, words tumbling from her mouth in a stream.

"I-i have to pee." I announced, standing and wandering away.

"Great going, dipshit." I heard Keith snap behind me. He couldn't be mad at Alissa. She had no idea.

Twigs snapped beneath my feet and I pressed my palm against a tree. I noticed Lemmy sitting across the way.

"You all right, Junko?" He asked.

I nodded and glanced towards the forest. All I could see were the trees. They were dense and closed in. I looked skyward and noticed that despite the fact we'd seen a bird earlier, we had neither heard nor seen any other animals.

"It's like a vortex." A voice said, and I jumped.

A guy was standing next to me. His hair was frizzy and dark. His eyes were sunken and his features were gaunt. He seemed to hover on the verge of being slightly strange.

"Syd, quit it. You're scaring the girl." Lemmy snapped.

"What? It is." Syd pouted, insistently.

"Your head is like a vortex." Roger called.

Syd round on him and narrowed his wide eyes. I noticed Paul across the way talking to another guy. He smiled and winked at me. A sudden rush of nerves hit me and I gulped. Lemmy stood and patted my shoulder, reassuringly. He faced everyone.

"Right, I'm gonna take my group to the left," He motioned towards the trees. "That cool with you, Chris?"

Chris glanced at me and then looked at Lemmy, nodding. Lemmy whistled and the teams split. I watched Greg walk towards Lemmy, along with Alissa, Ronnie, Danny, Syd, Paul and his friend. Paul's friend walked past me, tapping my shoulder as he did.

"My name's John." He smiled, wryly.

"If she had any sense she wouldn't care." Paul sassed, shoving John's shoulder.

A few others of Lemmy's team passed by including Ricky. He was walking with a girl. She smiled at me and the two of them followed their team. We all started walking now. I was able to be a bit more relaxed with Chris now. He took my hand once they were out of sight.

"Stay close to me." He said, and I nodded.

Glancing back, I noticed Keith was walking with Roger and David, who was was randomly setting fire to trees and plants. Roger slapped his hand and muttered something to him. David merely laughed.

Andy and Ashley were next. Andy was looking around, clearly taking all of this very seriously.

"Ugh, this mud is getting on my new boots." Ashley complained.

"Shut up." Andy snapped.

Michael and Hayley were to one side. Michael kept having to move tree branches out the way since Hayley seemed to stumble over everything. The three new recruits, Ashley, Devin and Niall were on the other side. The trees all looked the same and they seemed to be getting closer as we walked. I began to think they were alive.

"Junko? You all right?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, just a little claustrophobic." I murmured.

Chris gave my hand a gentle squeeze. I squeezed back and glanced at him. He smiled and interlocked our fingers. We must have walked for ages in the silent forest. Finally we stopped.

"I hate this place." Devin griped.

Niall glanced at him and sighed. I wondered how well angels could sense. Niall was looking around and frowning.

"I can't feel anything except us." He said suddenly.

"What about Oli and Ryan?" Chris asked.

"No, Sir. I can't sense anyone that might be injured or in trouble. It's like a dead zone." He stated, turning and stumbling a little.

A dead zone. Was that even possible? I was getting nothing as well.

"Maybe they already went home." Hayley suggested.

"No, Oli was straight-laced. He'd have reported to Joan." Andy glanced at her then. His blue eyes were nervous. He'd begun to toy with his lion mane of hair.

The sound of twigs snapping caused everyone to look round. It seemed to be coming from all around us. The silence was broken by a scream that didn't belong to anyone here. It sounded inhuman and echoed off the forest floor. Hayley yelped and cupped her hands to her ears. The screaming lasted a full three minutes then stopped.

"What the fuck was that, Chris?" Ashley asked. His eyes were wide.

"I don't know, but be prepared." Chris snapped.

He stood in front of me. The scythe materialised in his hands. I glanced round and noticed everyone had removed their weapons, readying themselves.

Then I saw it. Ghostly hands stretched through the trees. Apparitions materialised until they were fully formed. We were surrounded. The first shot was from Roger as he blasted one of the ghosts. It faltered, but kept approaching.

Chaos. Everything became chaotic. The echo of spirit bullets resonated around the area. A ghost reached for me and its arm was quickly cut off by Chris' scythe. The ghost leapt back and hissed.

This seemed like some kind of ambush, like someone had laid a trap for us and we had walked right into it. The ghosts kept coming and seemed relentless. Chris grabbed me, shoving me towards Keith.

"Take her and run." He ordered.

"N-no, Chris." I yelped, but Keith grabbed me.

He cut through the ghosts with his knife and we all ran. We ran till we were out of breath and panting. The trees started thinning and we found ourselves on the road side again. I gasped and Keith let me go. Tears streamed down my face. I sobbed loudly, not caring who saw. A hand rested on my back. I turned to find Ashley sitting next to me. Her eyes were soft and kind.

"Sssh, don't cry," She whispered, pulling me closer. "He'll be ok."

How could she know that? The sound of trees being broken made us all jump. Lemmy's team came crashing through the tree line onto the road. Lemmy was nowhere in sight. Alissa was at the front. She sat on the road and broke down as well. Hayley crawled over, touching her shoulder. Alissa grabbed Hayley and leaned on her.

We waited. None of the other legions appeared. Maybe they hadn't been ambushed yet. I glanced around. Everyone looked a little afraid.

"What's going to happen?" I murmured.

"Chris will sort it." Michael smiled. He sat next to me.

"H-he will?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Legion leaders are strong, like really strong," Greg had appeared next to me. "They can't be at full strength with us around though. That kind of power could kill a human."

The look on his face was serious and I parted my lips, then glanced at the forest. There was nothing but silence. We waited and waited. It felt like an eternity. Entire trees were suddenly uprooted and Andy smirked.

"They're fine." He nudged me.

Lemmy appeared first. He'd lost his cowboy hat and seemed more annoyed about that than anything else. Chris appeared moments later. The scythe de-materialised, but his eyes were still black. I didn't care. Ashley helped me to stand.

"Go to him." She whispered to me.

"But everyone will-" I started.

"Fuck everyone else." She replied.

I stumbled slightly, but ran over. I wrapped my arms round Chris and for a moment I thought he might shove me away, but his arms went round me, pressing me closer.

"Stupid, stupid." I shouted into his chest.

I couldn't help but cry. I honestly thought he'd been injured. I pulled back to look at him. His features were a blur through the lense of tears.

"I'm here now," He murmured, bringing one hand to cup my face, wiping away a few stray tears. "I'm sorry I scared you."

I sniffled and he lowered his hand, gripping my hip. I leaned into him. His eyes were on the legion now. They all looked exhausted.

"What were they?" Roger asked.

"I don't know." Chris replied.

The shock was palpable. Across the way Lemmy was answering their questions as best as he could, but he seemed just as confused. The forest on the other side was quiet. Lemmy looked concerned. He lifted his wrist and spoke into the device.

We would definitely need to re-group. This was quickly becoming dangerous.

 


	27. Night Twenty-Seven

 

"Unbelievable." Debbie fumed.

We'd sat on the road side for no longer than a few minutes when the other two legions appeared. Debbie and Eric had appeared moments later. Right now everyone was standing around chatting amongst themselves. I was listening to the conversation with the legion leaders.

"They were waiting for us, no doubt." Lemmy snapped.

"I don't know about you three, but I'm not leading my legion into danger." Eric seethed.

Evangeline was standing next to me. Around us, legions were chatting and there was a tremor of fear circulating.

"And what about Joan?" Chris snapped. His tone made me glance round. "What will you tell her, Eric? Will you lie and say you did this to the best of your ability?"

Eric blanched and glared at Chris.

"Eric hates that." Keith had appeared next to me, smirking.

"W-what does he hate?" I asked.

"He doesn't like a younger demon telling him what to do." Keith replied.

I glanced at Evangeline and noted that she was shrinking back. The thought that he would treat her worse as a means to get his anger out terrified me. Lemmy's bracelet buzzed and he pressed the button.

"Talk to me." He said, briskly.

"It's Tris. I've just had an SOS signal," Tris spoke quickly, frantically. "It's coming from the house."

Silence rang out amongst the legions. Lemmy turned to look at the legions. All were watching and waiting. I noticed Ariana across the way.

"All of you are to stay put." Lemmy snapped.

"Do you need angels, Sir?" Niall asked.

Lemmy shook his head. I peeked round the leaders at the house. It was a husk standing on the edge of the road. It seemed to give off an aura of animosity. There was something about the way its windows stared out at us.

"We can't risk anyone getting injured." Debbie said.

She nodded and started to walk away. Eric grunted and followed her. Lemmy followed as did Chris. I met his gaze and he smiled just slightly. Fear ate away at me. What would they be walking into?

I watched them until they were walking into the house and were gone. That's when everyone started gossiping again.

Ariana saw me at last and waved. I noticed Mike sat next to her. She leaned into him and they started talking quietly. Evangeline was still next to me. I heard her sniff and glanced at her.

"Hey, are you all right?" I asked.

"I'm fine, thank you," She murmured. "I am afraid though."

It was hard to know what she was afraid of. Was it a fear that Eric wouldn't come back? I guess I'd underestimated how much she cared for him. Everyone's attention was on the house. Time ticked by in maddening seconds.

I kept my eyes on the house and was amazed when it pratically imploded. I gasped in horror. What was happening?

"I kinda figured they'd do that?" Keith murmured.

"Do what? What happened to the house?" I replied, frantically.

"They've quarantined it." Roger said.

He rested a hand on my shoulder. He didn't look worried so I guessed everything was ok. I noticed the four of them walking back. Lemmy was carrying someone and so was Chris.

"Oh my God." Hayley whispered.

Lemmy approached first and I noticed he was holding a younger demon with longer, brown hair. His eyes were closed and there was a slight tinge of blue on his neck. Chris was also holding another demon. This one looked even younger. The same blue tinge was creeping up his throat.

"We need to go now." Lemmy snapped.

I pressed my bracelet as did everyone else. Everything happened in a blur when we got back. Tris appeared, pushing a trolley. She had prepared a needle and sank it into the young demon's arm.

"That's Ryan." Keith said.

Ryan shuddered and Chris set him down on the stretcher that had been wheeled out. The blue tinge was slowly starting to fade away.

"Any longer and he'd be gone." Tris murmured.

Tris took a shaky breath and wheeled the stretcher away, taking Ryan with her. I went to follow Chris, but Keith stopped me.

"He's going to have to break the news to Joan." He murmured.

I nodded and Keith led me towards the infirmary. The room smelt sterile as we entered. Tris was pressing a cold compress to Ryan's head. The blue was fading from his neck and hands at a steady enough pace. His breathing was ragged though.

"Will he be all right?" I asked.

"Demons are fast healers. He'll be fine." Tris smiled at last.

The blue was slowly disappearing and I glanced at Tris again. If the venom killed humans then what effect would it have on demons?

"What would have happened if they hadn't be found?" I whispered.

"The venom kills humans, but it fogs a demons' mind, makes them primal and deadly." Keith said.

My lips parted and I watched as Ryan's eyes flickered open. He had doe brown eyes and soft features. He went to sit up very quickly, but was ushered down by Tris.

"Oli? Where is he?" Ryan gasped.

"Safe. Recieving anti-venom at Lemmy's." Tris replied, pressing the compress to his forehead again.

Ryan's lower lip trembled and he brown eyes went to Keith and I.

"K-keith?" He murmured.

"Welcome back, Ry." Keith smiled.

Ryan managed a weak smile then his eyes went to me and he shyly looked away. The door flew open and Brendon rushed in. He practically sprinted to Ryan and hugged him. Tris jumped back, smiling.

"I'm so sorry." Brendon said, words slurring.

"It's fine. I'm ok," Ryan replied, pushing Brendon back. "See, all good."

"I should have gone with you." Brendon continued.

"No, Oli and I needed to do it on our own." Ryan said, eyes flicking towards his hands.

They both chatted away. Brendon apologised a lot, but Ryan brushed him off. Eventually Ryan sat up. He seemed a little better. He attempted to stand and nearly fell, causing Brendon to catch him mid fall.

"Guess I'm a little clumsy." Ryan chuckled.

Keith led me back to the foyer. I was still a little shaken by today's events.

"What would happen if a legion leader got infected?" I asked.

Keith's shoulders tensed, "It could be very dangerous."

A lump formed in my throat. How did he know it was very dangerous? Had something happened before?

"Has it ever happened before?" I said, voice hoarse.

"Yeah, only once before," Keith replied, then turned to look at me. "Hey, don't look so freaked out."

Easy for him to say. We went our seperate ways and I traipsed up to my, sorry, our room. I opened the door and nearly leapt out of my skin. Chris was sitting on the bed. His dark eyes were amused.

"You scare too easily." He chuckled.

"I thought you'd still be with Joan." I said, choosing to ignore the sass.

"I did what I had to." He shrugged.

He toyed with his hair. It had been pushed back to reveal those weird spikes in the sides of his head. I was definitely going to seize the moment to spend time with him. I felt a bit transient sometimes, like I didn't get to see him often.

"Come here." He smirked, motioning me over. My body lurched forward and ended up next to the bed.

"I hate when you do that." I pouted.

"Yeah, I'm so awful." He said, eyebrow arching.

"You know sarcasm is the lowest form of wit." I grinned

"And the highest form of intelligence." Chris replied.

Smug jerk. I glared at him and he simply pressed his hand to my cheek, eyes searching mine. The glare disappeared and I tried to meet those dark eyes. I wanted to smile or make a joke, but it didn't seem appropriate. Instead I opted for bravery or stupidity, both were options. I leaned down and kissed him, very gently. My heart beat was thrumming loudly. I could hear it.

I pulled back, blushing awkwardly, "S-sorry."

Before I had a chance to register what was happening, he pulled me forward and our lips met again. This time it was on his terms. His tongue slid between my parted lips and I tried my best to mimic the actions. All the while, my hands trembled. We pulled apart far too quickly and I thought it might be over.

Normally we kissed, normally that was it. In a way I wanted to see how far it would go, but I was also terrified. Chris pulled me to sit in front of him. No problem, we'd sat like this before. My shoulders tensed a little when he traced down my arms.

"Relax." He murmured.

"I am relaxed." I replied, taking a breath.

"No, you're not," He replied, lips grazing my neck. "Take a nice deep breath and untense yourself."

I swallowed and took a steadying breath. My shoulders slowly untensed. I toyed with the hem of my jumper. I was a little afraid to move. Chris' hand gently rested on my stomach and I felt his fingers skim along the skin where my jumper met my skin. It was a soft, barely there touch.

"B-be gentle." I whispered.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He murmured, hot breath fanning my ear.

His hand slipped under my jumper, tracing upwards towards the wire of my bra. My heart was hammering against my chest in a rhythmic way. I wanted to close my eyes, but I was so fascinated. He'd touched me once like this, but through my clothes. I took a steadying breath as the cup was lowered.

His thumb circled my nipple and I let out a gasp. My God, how embarrassing. My cheeks tinged. My body rioted. It felt good. My body arched into his hand and that seemed to be it. There was no going back.

Our lips met again in a more passionate kiss and his fingers continued to tease me, eliciting moans that were absorbed into the kiss. His other hand trailed down and slid past the barrier that was my jeans. We pulled apart and I almost freaked out.

"W-woah, what are you doing?" I asked.

"I would have thought that was obvious." Chris replied, voice husky.

"N-no I just wasn't-" I babbled.

"I want to touch you." He growled.

My tummy fluttered and I nodded. The hand on my breast continued and I whimpered. His other hand slid further until he was touching me down there. Oh my God, who describes it as 'down there'. I'm such a loser.

His fingers slid into me, gently stroking me. It felt good. My body reacted instinctively and I pressed myself against his hand, urging him on. My breathing was ragged as he touched me. What was happening? This was all new to me. His fingers curled and brushed against something.

"So wet." He murmured, nipping my ear.

I couldn't answer. Nothing was happening. My throat had closed up and all I seemed capable of doing was moaning. A single digit slid into me and I whimpered. It felt uncomfortable, but not unpleasant. Something was building inside me though. Something I'd never felt before.

Chris' fingers pressed against something and my body reacted. It felt like something was being unknotted. My moans had increased as the feeling washed over me. It felt like I was flying. I slumped against him, dazed and floaty.

Chris slid his hand out from my jeans, the slight brush of his fingers was too much, like I was over stimulated. His other hand left my breast, slowly tracing down my stomach to trace patterns there.

It felt like my body was lighter than air. I glanced at him and he smirked. Smug jerk.

"T-that was-um." I blurted out.

"Hot," He finished, pupils dilating. "You were so wet and responsive."

My face heated up. I wanted to smile giddily, instead I covered my face. He sighed and pried my hands from my face, pressing his lips to mine, kissing me almost lazily. We pulled apart.

I wasn't too stupid, but guys had needs too. My eyes trailed down and I realised I'd been caught so my gaze flicked back to his.

"I-i have a confession." I stated.

"Do you now." He grinned, lifting his hand to trace his thumb against my cheek.

"I-i'm a virgin." I continued.

Chris raised a brow, smirk growing, "No, really. I'm shocked."

"Yeah, I've never done this stuff before," I stuttered out. "Also do I have to, like, do something to you, because I totally can."

"You want to touch me." Chris chuckled.

"I-i um." Was my response.

My gaze went to the front of his trousers. There was definitely a bulge there. Was I brave enough to touch him though? What if I was terrible? I might be so bad at it that he'd never want me to touch him again. Then it'd be awkward. I felt his hand lift my face to meet his eyes.

"What're you thinking about, Junko?" He asked.

"That I'd be terrible at doing stuff to you and then you'd get sick of me and then you'd leave me and never want to talk to me again." His finger pressed against my lips, halting the word vomit.

He leaned forward till we were inches apart, noses touching. He smirked again, tracing my lips with his thumb.

"So nervous," He murmured, and I nodded, ashamedly. "And that's ok. There's no rush."

I blinked at my mature boyfriend. He went to remove his thumb and leaned back on the cushions.

"But it's not fair if I don't be a good girlfriend." I whispered.

"Been reading stupid magazines again?" He asked, eyes glinting mischivously.

"It's not stupid." I pouted.

"Human magazines about fashion and love advice are stupid. They're a waste of time. You don't need to change who you are because I like who you are." He replied, rolling his eyes.

I smiled slightly and shuffled closer, reaching up to touch the piercings on his lips. His eyes were watching me. This was a start for me.

"So pretty." I smiled.

"Hang on." He grinned, lifting his hand.

I watched as he removed the ball and slid the piercing out. Ok, gross. He held the piercing out to me, grinning at my reaction.

"You're so mean." I whined.

"You love it." Chris replied. "Wanna help me put it back in?"

"No way, that's weird." I said, and he laughed.

I was fascinated though, watching the piercing go back in and watching the ball be screwed back on. Thanks for that, Chris. I did still love him though, but I wasn't stupid. I knew he didn't really feel the same. I jumped a little when his hand lifted my head to meet his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He asked, and I bit at my lip.

"N-nothing, I was just thinking." I whispered.

"About?" Chris said. He looked concerned. I hadn't meant to worry him.

I'd always sort of imagined doing intimate things was something two people did when they loved one another. I awkwardly loved him, but he'd sort of said he didn't love me.

"You're right," I murmured, and he frowned. "I do love when you tease me. I love everything about you."

I sniffled a little and went to move backwards until he leaned forward, stopping me from escaping, dark eyes analysing me.

"L-let go." I whined, a few tears leaking out.

"You really think I don't love you?" Chris asked, gripping my face so I couldn't lower my head and avoid his line of sight.

"Y-you said-" I sniffled again, like an idiot.

"Has everything I've done ever shown that I don't love you." He replied, expression not giving anything away.

"N-no, it's just that when I asked last time." I whispered, and he smiled slightly.

"Of course I love you," Chris said. My eyes widened. "You wouldn't be here if I didn't love you, dummy."

I slumped slightly and a few more tears leaked out. I felt like an idiot. He sighed and pulled me closer so I was pressed against his chest, hands threading through my hair. His lips found my forehead and pressed a kiss there. I smiled through the haze of tears and cuddled closer.

 


	28. Night Twenty-Eight

 

Rumors spread like wild fire. These rumours concerned what had happened to Oli and Ryan during their time away. I was seated in the window seat, staring across the grass. Demons were huddled in groups, talking. I'd already heard the gossip as I sat doing my coursework.

Apparenly Oli and Ryan had gone out on a simple mission that should have taken less than an hour. It was a starter mission since Ryan was new. They'd been ambushed, that much was known, but after that the details became hazy.

"No way." A new recruit was saying.

"Well, I'm not doing missions." Her friend stated, adamently.

"You're braver than me. Would you say that to Chris?" The other girl snorted out a laugh.

I pretended to be reading my text book. I heard them laughing again and pretended to not listen.

"Shut up," The first girl said, shrilly. "I hear that little human knows our boss quite well."

My face heated up and I buried my face in my book. This was super embarassing. The other night was the furthest I'd ever gone with anyone ever and just thinking about it made my heart rate pick up.

"Ya know, you guys are supposed to be studying." I glanced up when I heard David's voice.

He was leaning against a far wall, glaring at the new recruits. They all looked a little shaken by his sudden arrival. I guessed he'd been assigned to train them.

The new recruits huffed and grabbed their books and left, whispering as they went. David's eyes landed on me. He grinned and ambled over.

"Whatcha studying, Geekarella?" He asked.

"The poems I'm reading for my finals." I replied, showing the text book.

"Wow, boring." David grinned.

He toyed with his hands and a spark nearly singed the curtain next to me. I looked at him and he blinked, innocently.

"Are you training them?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Yes and no. Roger and I are training them." He sighed then.

"If you don't like it then why not ask for a change." I suggested.

"Everyone has a team of new demons to train." He said, touching the curtain until it began to smoke.

I reached out to remove his hand and he pushed my forehead, holding me at arm's length. I faintly wondered if there were fire alarms here. David removed his hand and stood, stepping backwards.

"Do you delight in causing trouble?" I groaned.

"It's a talent." He smirked.

He waved and turned, leaving me in the window seat alone. I glanced back at my text book again. Shakespheare always entertained me. I flicked through and then set the book down, instead picking up another book.

The Merchant of Venice was one of my writing essays. I sifted through the pages, pausing at one point in the play. Act three scene five with Jessica and Launcelot, the clown. My eyes kept skipping back to the words, _'the sins of the father are to be laid upon the children.'_ Sighing, I shut the book and set it down on my lap.

"What are you reading?"

I nearly jumped at the sudden voice above me. I glanced up and noticed a new recruit standing next to me. He looked young and very friendly. His dark hair was slicked back and he was smiling.

"Oh, just some Shakespheare." I replied, slightly on edge.

"That's cool. I really like Shakespheare too. Romance always seemed to be a tragedy for him," He paused, then rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm Charlie. New here."

I relaxed a bit and Charlie seated himself opposite me. His features were boyish and he looked far too innocent to be a demon, but looks were always decieving here.

"It's for a class I do." I smiled.

"Ah, ok," He nodded. "So, that boss of ours is kinda scary, right?"

I blanched a bit and looked away. Charlie must have been really new. When I looked again, he was looking at me. His gaze was apprehensive and I remembered my first time meeting Chris and how scared I was. Then I thought of him now and how he had changed towards me.

"I like him." I whispered.

Charlie's brows furrowed and he seemed to be thinking again and then his face became a mask of horror.

"Shit," He gasped. "You're the human girl, right? Devin told me about you."

He stepped back and I flailed a little, not wanting him to think I was going to tell Chris what he had said.

"I'm so, so sorry." Charlie raised his hands.

"N-no, it's fine." I laughed a little.

That must have set Charlie at ease and his shoulders relaxed somewhat. He actually managed a nervous laugh and seated himself next to me again.

"S-so, you and Chris?"He grinned.

"Mmm hm." I replied.

My face was on fire. Discussing my relationship with others was something that made me really nervous, but also happy. I was proud to be with someone that liked me back.

"I was gonna marry a girl from the sixth circle. I miss her." He said, smiling again.

"What was her name?" I asked, and his face turned pink.

"Lily," He said, softly.

"That's so sweet." I replied.

Charlie nodded then, rubbing his shift sleeve as though it was irritating him. Must have been itchy fabrics.

"So, you and Chris are happy? He's kinda intense, right?" Charlie said, rather quickly.

I shifted and looked at my lap. I heardCharlie whimper then looked up to find my boyfriend standing right behind him, hand on his shoulder.

"Even more intense when I find you sitting here and not in the training hall with the others," Chris grinned. "But you were just going, right?"

Charlie leapt away, faster than I'd seen him move. He glanced at me again and I looked at Chris.

"Don't be mean." I scolded.

Chris glanced at me and sat in Charlie's spot and his eyes met mine, the cold brown being replaced by warmth.

"Sorry, sorry I'll go, like straight away," Charlie stammered.

"Still here." Chris replied, eyes still on me.

Charlie bowed and ran. I sighed and glanced at Chris.

"He seemed nice." I said.

"You would say that." Chris chuckled.

He glanced around, possibly looking for Tris with her list of jobs. Some of those jobs had to be done by the demon in charge. I toyed with my book.

"Are you hiding from Tris?" I asked, and giggled when he scowled.

"No, I'm taking a break," He replied, shrugging. "Are you ok?"

I glanced at him and he looked serious for a minute. I blinked dumbly at him and he frowned at me. I suddenly realised what he was referring to.

"Oh, I get it." I whispered.

"Took you long enough, Junko."

"Be nice. Y-yes, I'm fine."

His features relaxed again and his hand reached out to rest on top of mine, thumb brushing along my knuckles.

"I don't want to be too forceful with you." He said, and I lifted my face to look at him.

He was staring at some spot on the marble floor. I thought for a moment that he looked really vulnerable and unsure. I smiled bashfully at that. He looked so cute if someone so spikey and scary could look cute.

His eyes flicked back to me and the smirk appeared on his face again. Definitely not vulnerable then. There was a brief pause when his eyes scanned the room and then he was leaning closer. We were inches apart and I gulped at the contact.

My skin prickled when I felt his breath fan my ear. I was gripping the text book like some kind of lifeline. We were in public. Someone could walk by at any second now.

"Although, the way you were pressing against me did make me want to be really forceful with you." Chris said, the growl in his tone made me let out a steadying breath.

"W-we're in p-public." I whimpered out.

He pulled back slightly so he could look me in the eyes. There was a defiance in those eyes and I sincerely hoped that Tris didn't walk in now, or any of the new recruits.

I had a million reasons why we shouldn't be sat here like this and he wiped all of them away by pressing his lips to mine. My squeak of protest was cut off as the kiss deepened and I gripped his jacket. The sound of heels on the marble made Chris pull back. He regained his composure quicker than I regained mine.

Tris appeared from round the corner and looked between us. I looked frazzled and Chris just looked amused.

"You both look adorable." She beamed.

I blushed and Chris rolled his eyes. She stepped closer and actually handed me something. I accepted and was stunned by.

"Since you're here, Junko. It is only right that a formal invitation is presented to you." She continued.

I glanced at the parchment:

_The Winter Solstice Ball._

"O-oh ok." I murmured, staring at it.

"The royal family all attend," Tris grinned, but aimed her words at Chris. "I assumed that Chris had not told you."

I remembered the portrait, but kept my mouth shut. Tris nodded and clicked away. I smiled slightly. The next confession would probably come as no surprise.

"Go with me." Chris said. I pouted at him and he raised a brow.

"Is that an order?" I laughed.

"As a matter of fact, it is," He chuckled, then looked serious. "My Father and Mother will be there."

"You mean Lucifer?" I asked, and he nodded.

I ran my fingers along my text book again. I was a girl, a human. I had no nobility in my family. My parents had very little money before they died. My aunt wasn't rich or powerful. I hesistated.

"I-i'm not royalty or anything," I murmured. "Your parents might be expecting someone more interesting."

I felt Chris' fingers lift my chin to look at me.

"I want you to be there with me," He said, pressing a kiss to my lips. "Please."

"Y-yes, then. I would be happy to." I replied.

I'd never actually been to a prom either. I'd shyed away from my high school prom and instead had spent the night, eating snacks and watching Doctor Who. This would be a little out of my comfort zone.

"I'll need a dress," I said. "I didn't go to my high school prom so I don't have one."

"I'm sure Hayley and Ariana will love to help you with that." Chris replied.

 

**************************

 

Not even joking. Hayley actually found out I was going, somehow. She corned me half a day later.

"OMG, you're going to the Solstice Ball, right?" She shrieked, loudly.

A few demons on the grass glanced at her. She didn't care. Michael was sat, glaring at her. I managed a feeble smile and an apologetic glance at the other demons.

"Yes, Chris asked me." I replied.

"I knew it. I'd be happy to help you get a dress." She sounded so pleading.

"Do the legions go?" I asked, and she faltered.

"Duh, of course we go. The Solstice Ball is the height of importance here. Everyone goes." She continued.

"Who are you going with?" I asked, and she faltered again, face turning pink.

I glanced at her then at Michael. I guessed quite quickly.

"She wouldn't stop annoying me." He snapped.

"We get to dance." She sighed.

"Sounds like a blast."

I covered my mouth to stop myself from laughing.

"You guys are talking about the Solstice Ball, right?" Charlie had appeared. He looked much more composed today.

Hayley nodded, eagerly. Michael ignored him and continued toying with his bracelet. Charlie seated himself next to me.

"Is it too late to ask you, Junko?" He laughed. "I'm kidding, haha. Please don't tell Chris I said that. He might kill me."

"Is this your first time at a Solstice Ball,Charlie?" Hayley asked.

"Yeah, the sixth cirlce has their own celebration." He replied, toying with his sleeves.

I smiled at that and Hayley sat in front of me, pulling out a note book. She was doodling some things down in her tidy hand writing.

"I want to make you look like a princess." She grinned.

"H-hayley, no. I'm not-" I stammered.

"You're going with a prince." Michael pointed out.

I nearly threw up then. This little detail had gone over my head. Hayley was still grinning. She stood and gestured for me to follow.

I did as I was told and waved goodbye to Charlie and Michael. We walked out of the legion area and onto the cobbled streets.

"Lucky for you I know just the right demon to help." She beamed.

We had stopped in front of, what I assumed was a seamstresses. Hayley took my hand. My fingers trembled and we walked in. The shop was quiet and decorated like a faery hollow. It was so pretty. My eyes didn't know where to stop looking.

"Hayley? Is that you?" A squeaky voice asked.

A small girl appeared from round the corner. Her hair was tied back and she was wearing a set of overalls. Strange attire for making dresses.

"Hey, Esme, is your gran here?" Hayley grinned.

The girl nodded and shouted out the back. Someone was complaining and shuffling, then a woman appeared. She looked too young to be a gran. She stopped when she saw Hayley and me.

"Hey, Grannie Mae." Hayley said. "I've bought someone to meet you."

The woman glared at me. I managed to wave at her like a small mouse and she huffed in annoyance.

"I told you last time. I won't be doing anymore of your friends. As royal seamstress, I-"

"This is Junko," Hayley interrupted. "She and Chris are together."

The woman looked doubtful and laughed a little, "So says several other girls."

What? I blinked and Hayley pouted.

"You can ask him for yourself if you want." Hayley smirked.

Esme looked at her Gran and the older woman nodded. I heard her go to the back and I could hear her speaking to Tris. The confirmation was given and Esme reappeared, looking flustered.

"I-it's true." She whispered.

Mae looked at me and finally she cracked a wry smile. Hayley stepped back and Mae approached. She circled me like a vulture.

"I don't want to waste your time." I whispered.

She paused behind me, jabbing me in the side.

"A princess is no waste of time. You need a dress fit for royalty and to knock that boy off his feet." She sassed, laughing. I glanced at Esme and she smiled now.

"I-i don't know where to start." I confessed.

"Lucky for you I know exactly what to do." Mae grinned.

 


End file.
